Troy
by AQA473
Summary: Commander Shepard has saved the galaxy and countless people, changed lives, and altered history forever. Charismatic, strong, and brave, Shepard has always been a paragon of all that is good and just. Yet, there's one field of battle she may never conquer. Mass Effect 2 pre-Suicide Mission, FemShack, therefore femslash. Slight FemShiara/Jelly for tasty plot chunks. Please review.
1. Prologue

"If you release her from cryo, it will open all the cells on the entire station."

"We've got no choice, Garrus. I didn't get attacked and nearly imprisoned just to turn back at the thought of conflict."

"Just letting you know what you're getting us into." He always was the thought on the tip of my tongue.

"Not that I'd protest to leaving a criminal where it belongs." Of course Miranda needed to be the one with the lack of optimism.

"Thanks, Operative Lawson, but I think I know what I'm getting myself into."

"You _think_." Alarms blared through the room and the blood from the man we just killed pooled around my booted feet. Now or never, I guess.

One fast hack and a sweep of my omni-tool sent the room beyond the glass into the throes of an event that left me amazed. A cylinder rose from the ground spewing carbonized air as it surfaced. The vapor dispersed leaving my team and I staring at… well, I don't know. Not what I expected, certainly. It, _she_, was dormant. At least for the moment we first saw her. From her torso up her skin was littered in tattoos. I'd never seen anything like it. It was almost as though her entire life's story was told in the paleness of her flesh. Kind of… poetic. But the beautiful artwork concealed deep, horrendous scars carved systematically across her body. A tragic twist to what was surely a vast tale of excitement and heartbreak.

Her breasts were held only by leather straps that unbelievably covered them rather adequately. Her tattoos coating her skin kept her appearance from feeling awkward to see, however. Yet, amongst all the oddities of this woman, what stole my breath was her face. Her head was shaved; an artful line of bizarre designs etched around her scalp, and left nothing of her features hidden. She was young, younger than me, and her face certainly showed it. She had hints of eyeliner and thick, red lips with a tiny streak of stray lipstick coming off the right of her upper lip. She looked calm, peaceful, coming out of was must have been a lengthy period of cryogenic hibernation. That didn't last long.

The instant her eyes flashed open, those beautiful auburn eyes, her faced roared into anger. She yelled, tearing the restraints from her body with primal ferocity. YMIR mechs just down the ramp from her position primed weapons and targeted her. I panicked. There was nothing I could do, not from here, so I stared down painfully as the scene unfolded in slow motion with my hands planted against the pane. I had never seen this woman before in my life. Subject Zero? But now I was prepared to jump through this bullet-proof, reinforced glass to save her.

I was surprised further, however, when she leapt from her place and charged the mechs with her fist aflame in the signature sapphire light of biotics. I didn't see her strike, but the flame and debris eschewed from beneath the deck told me her attack had been successful and devastating. The next few seconds resulted in heightened alarms and a sudden shudder that rang throughout the entire ship. She was good. She was powerful. She was gorgeous.

I wanted her.

Following in her wake was like walking through the remnants of a crashed freighter. Bodies, equipment, and containment cells were tossed about and laying around like she had strolled through on a battleship. We picked off the remnants of the Blue Suns security force all the while admiring Subject Zero's handiwork. Or, at least, I was.

I spent as much time gazing in awe as I did firing my weapon. The thermal rounds piercing the skulls of my opponents came as an afterthought as my mind sought after this crazed biotic. I usually mourned the loss of every soul I removed from this life, but these ones didn't affect me. _They didn't affect me_.

The warden's demise signaled the end of the facility and the remaining Blue Suns knew it. They fled with their guns between their legs and we got back to the Normandy with no resistance. We found our convict yelling at something outside, likely the Normandy, as a Blue Suns soldier approached from her right. Without thinking, I removed my Predator from its holster and fired off a quick round that removed the man from the world. He'd go down in history as the man I saved Subject Zero from. She turned to me with one of the most frightened faces I had ever seen. It vanished as soon as I saw it, but it was there. It belied everything the events here had told me about her. I was speechless.

"What the hell do you want?" her voice was tough, like it'd been dragged through a blender and the most heart-wrenching moments in history. I wanted to touch her, to tell her she was safe. Why would I want to do that?

"I-," my voice was hoarse. I coughed and cleared my throat before starting over. "I came to get you, um, out of here." That didn't sound too convincing.

"Shit. You sound like a pussy." Oh my god. She totally said bad words right there. No one says bad words to me. I didn't know what to say. She had me there. "I'm not going anywhere with you. You're Cerberus." Oh, so she was looking at the Normandy. I hoped she wasn't serious about not going with me. I wasn't sure my heart could handle it.

"Look," I did my best to bring up the most commanding voice I could. "I need your help," with more than fighting Collectors.

"You show up in a Cerberus frigate to take me away somewhere. You think I'm stupid?" There was so much disdain in her voice. What had she done to Cerberus? What had Cerberus done to her? I chose to go with logic for this part.

"The ship's going critical and this is the closest and easiest way off of it. The only thing I need from you is your help." Most of that was the truth.

"We don't have time for this, Shepard. Just knock her out and we'll deal with this on the Normandy." I stared at Garrus aghast. Hurt this beautiful being? Was he mad?

"I'd like to see you try." That statement sounded weak, almost like she didn't mean it. She sounded lost and my friend just threatened her. I wanted to hold and tell her I was there.

"We'll do no such thing."

"Good move." Now her voice was back. She was safe once more. "Look, if you want me to come with you, make it worth my while." She sounded as though she needed more than she was letting on.

"Say the word and I'll give you whatever you need." Say drop and I'm on my knees.

"Don't make promises you can't keep." Old wounds surfaced on her lips and I knew she was hurting. I'd do anything at that point to keep that from happening to her ever again. "I bet your ship's got lots of Cerberus databases. I want to take a look at those files; see what Cerberus has got on me. You want me on your team? Let me go through those databases." I hoped whatever she planned on finding in those files wouldn't hurt her any further.

"Done. As soon as you're on board, you'll have full clearance to all our files." I didn't have the authority to do that, but it felt like I was under a trance. I needed to make this woman happy or else… my mind couldn't simulate that possibility.

"Shepard, you're not authorized to do that!" Her words mimicked my thoughts and it couldn't have made me happier.

"Oh, it upsets the cheerleader. Even better." I sensed joy in that statement. I'd do anything to hear it again.

She walked up to me and pointed her tattooed finger straight at my chest. "You better be straight-up with me." My lungs had vacated so I settled for a nod in response. She looked away her eyes leaving my face. My heart sunk. I hadn't even noticed it had risen. "So what are we waiting around here for?" I was about ready to pop out the confetti and throw a party. This gorgeous thing had agreed to come on my ship in exchange for a few files on an organization I didn't even care for? I didn't even practice a religion and I had been blessed. An angel stood before me and she was going to be on board my ship in a matter of moments. My bliss only permitted a few words in response.

"Move out." Pitiful. The least I could have said was 'I love you.'

This was most definitely the start of something neither of us could have ever predicted in our wildest dreams. And that alone filled me with dread.


	2. Just Don't Touch the Merchandise

"Could you go over that again?"

Shepard appreciated the care with which her Turian ally treated this operation. "Here's it in a nut shell: we were scanning this planet for resources and discovered a facility that is a front for a notorious intergalactic drug ring. They're a larger exporter of red dust than the Eclipse so we're going to the surface to see to it that they cease their operations. With or without force is completely up to them." Cera's convict friend scoffed roughly while peering callously out their drop ship's starboard viewport. "Jack, you better not start anything", Cera said sternly. The accused raised her hands in mock defense.

"Oh no, brave commander, I wouldn't dare defy _your_ rule." Shepard sighed, but knew better than to argue with the stubborn woman. Garrus looked between them stoically before clearing his throat.

"So, um, Shepard, when are we arriving at the target location?" Jack resumed her sulking by the viewport and Cera released another exasperated sigh before switching her attention to Garrus.

"I'd say in about twenty seven minutes. So, knowing you, you may as well start prepping now." Garrus nodded curtly before reaching under his bench in the small orbit-to-surface transport vessel where he relinquished the slim sniper rifle known as the M-97 Viper. It was too soft for Shepard's tastes, but well suited for the agile Turian who valued speed over power; which was a stark contrast to the angry human that sat to the left of Cera with an assault shotgun strapped to her hip and streams of biotic energy arcing chaotically between her fingers. Shepard was always concerned whether Jack would ever tear a swath through her ship's hull and eradicate half the crew.

Over the following half hour, Garrus disassembled and reassembled his Viper with inhuman precision, Jack stared without emotion at the scarred landscape beneath them, and Shepard went over possible options for negotiation when they made contact. She had made sure to tell the facility's proprietor, Calder, that an envoy from the Cerberus owned Normandy would be arriving, so they weren't dropping in unannounced. But she'd met with drug lords before. Only one still lived and that was from sheer pity on his pitiful existence. She wouldn't be surprised if this Calder character was creating a trap even now. She was prepared for open conflict but she was always open for peaceful alternatives. Cera decided upon utilizing her rank as a Cerberus officer to permit his continued operations under Cerberus jurisdiction in the distribution of legal materials for Cerberus which would likely bring in a more weighty income than their petty narcotics and contraband. The problem was that pirates typically despised humans, and Cerberus was all about humans. Not to mention the fact that illicit drugs were easier to procure and distribute and cheaper to maintain. But it beat getting blown to pieces; or, at least, that's what Shepard hoped.

She looked around the cramped quarters of their atmospheric faring vessel for another possible distraction. Garrus fiddling with his Viper? Boring. She already had to maintain her M-98 Widow and M-920 Cain, a hand-held nuclear-projectile launcher, which far exceeded the complexity of the Turian's tiny toy. Cera turned to her left and discovered Jack's writhing biotics to be quite amusing. She only looked a moment before Subject Zero took notice and scowled at her commander before hiding her interesting hand. Sighing, Cera turned to her own viewport.

This world was dead. It may have been beautiful once, but corporations and mining operations had made it an arid wasteland littered with centuries-old abandoned equipment and facilities. Dust storms ravaged the landscape. This planet appeared inhospitable, but it was apparently a lovely place for pirating illegal materials.

Just as Cera was contemplating whether or not there were pirate shanty towns, a very run down but large factory emerged from the horizon. The auto pilot slowed Shepard's craft as they approached indicating that this was their destination. Cera turned to her crew. "I hope you two are ready; we're dropping in five."

Garrus wrapped up his machinations, loaded the rifle, and secured it to his back before nodding. "Ready, Shepard."

Jack scoffed, still staring idly out the window. "What?" Cera stated incredulously.

"I'm always ready; you don't ever have to ask." The commander rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, Jack. But, here's something you don't know: don't screw this up."

"You got it." Cera chose to leave it at that and waited patiently as their craft slowly descended onto the sand-covered landing pad. When the swirling dust settled, an entourage of four people appeared near a door several dozen yards away from the Normandy's landing craft. The side hatch peeled upward and Shepard's team filed out then allowed the hatch to shut before making their way to the newcomers.

Cera now stood before the man whom she presumed to be Calder. He wore full battle armor of foreign design, carried a weapon on his hip that even Shepard could not recognize, and he carried himself like a man who had seen his fair share of combat. The thing that bothered Cera the most was that he was, indeed, a man; a human.

Most pirates in the galaxy were Batarians, Vorcha, Krogan, and Turians. The Alliance liked to keep a tight leash on humanity to prevent further damage to foreign relations, but human pirates were not unheard of; they were merely uncommon outside of human colonies. However, Calder's bodyguards, assuming that's what they were, were two Vorcha and a Krogan.

"Commander Cera Shepard," Calder said calmly. His voice was strong and held a certain amount of force that was more assertive rather than aggressive. "I've been awaiting your arrival with no small amount of excitement."

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "You have? For how long?"

He grinned toothily. "Why, since I heard of your resurrection, of course!" Shepard looked at Jack wearily. Garrus already knew this, but Jack had yet to encounter that which Shepard dealt with on an almost daily basis. Enough people to put a mass relay out of order had been more than eager to meet her since Cerberus brought her back. It seemed as though death procured more fame than life, which she found only mildly disappointing. "But, let us cast aside these pleasantries. Please, come inside for a spell. It's awful drafty out here." He and his escort disappeared into the massive structure behind him. Cera rolled her eyes dramatically before going through the open doorway with her partners in tow.

The door shut behind Jack who brought up the rear and they descended a steel grate staircase that joined with a mass collection of like-material catwalks suspended at least thirty meters above what they perceived as the floor which they could see through the grating. The array of partially spaced catwalks and platforms seemed to fill the entire building. Crates, boxes, boards, and all other forms of portable storage and transportation covered every platform and were all being maintained by what seemed to be an army of pirates and security mechs. They were even utilizing the massive YMIR mechs to carry large metal crates. The platforms were certainly sturdy, but, if it turned into a fire fight, they were cornered and out-numbered fifty to one.

Cera returned her thoughts to the task at hand and followed Calder as he mingled amongst his servants. Pirates of all different races and sexes maintained the hideout, and they all watched stoically as she passed. She ignored their sideways glances and followed Calder to a door she had not seen in her initial scanning on the far opposite end from where the landing platform was located. The door was sealed and an eye-identification console was attached to the wall to the right of the door. Calder placed his face against the open console and pressed a button beneath it. A moment later, a click emitted from the mechanism and the door slid open. Calder stepped inside and Shepard followed. Their respective parties remained outside on Calder's command. The door slid shut and Calder seated himself behind his steel desk as Cera stood before it with her arms crossing her chest. The seated man rapped his fingers on his desk before looking at her.

"As welcome as you are, I know you didn't come here for pleasantries. What is your business with my operations?" Cera dropped her arms and spoke in an authoritative tone.

"I've come to ask that your cease the exportation of illegal materials and contraband, under the authority of the Council," she stated in a strong voice. He barked a laugh.

"Is that a joke?" Shepard shrugged. "The Council has zero authority out here, so piss off with that bullshit."

"Fine. Under the authority of my thermonuclear warhead launcher strapped to my back, I demand you drop your current operations." He nodded, lips creased in thought.

"Fair advice." He sighed, eyes searching the floor. "It was a good run…" He looked to her once more. "What would we be doing instead? I'd rather die than hit up Purgatory." Shepard hid a smirk. For all his knowing of her, he certainly didn't do a very good job at tracking the destruction in her wake.

"You'd be privateers under Cerberus rule to steal from our enemies' ships and supplying us with any weapons and other materials you commandeer. I can assure you that your entire organization will be well compensated." Calder sat quietly for a moment then stood and walked up to Cera.

"Cerberus, eh? That's an organization I can respect. Alright, you've got yourself a deal," he said as he shook her hand. "I'll inform my men immede-" He was cut mid-sentence as an explosion erupted outside the office that was quickly followed by the sounds of gunfire. "What the fuck?" Calder ran to the door and smashed his fist against a panel next to it which only resulted in the door shaking before ceasing movement. "What the hell is going on, Shepard?" Cera stood speechless before she connected the dots.

"Jack…" She clenched her fists.

"One of yours? Well, get out there before they fuck anything up!" He snarled as he went to the far left wall and punched a button buried behind a stack of papers that caused the adjoined doors to explode outward into an unsuspecting pirate, killing the hapless criminal instantly. The scene outside caused Shepard to shake. Bodies littered the closest platform on which also held Jack and Garrus who were taking cover behind an overturned crate. Pirates and mechs swarmed on their position and a bright light blinded them as one of the YMIRs launched a missile that tore a hole in the grating next to Cera's companions.

Calder wheeled on Shepard. "Shepard, it's off!" He pulled out his foreign weapon and pulled back his finger. His stomach erupted, spewing blood and bile, before collapsing to the ground next to his unused firearm. Shepard saw Jack sitting outside with her arm outstretched towards the office and a frightened look on her face.

"Shepard!" Cera ignored Jack's cry and retrieved her Widow from her back, loaded a thermal round into the massive chamber, and activated her armor piercing rounds. Best for organics and mechs.

Shepard ran to join her companions and thrust the barrel over the crate, lined a shot, and implanted a bullet into the head of a pirate before crouching back down to load a second cartridge. "What the hell, Jack?" She screamed over the sound of singing bullets. The killer in question merely stared at the grating beneath them, Pistol poised between her ankles. Enemies were amassing down there as she gazed. Cera rolled her eyes and turned to Garrus to hand him a jump cable.

"Get down below and remove the competition." He nodded before taking the cable, attaching it to a nearby rail, and leapt over the edge with his Viper flaring. The scene below Jack was a fierce tumult, but her eyes didn't process it. She simply stared. Shepard growled at the woman's incompetence before bending over their swiftly degrading cover and attempted a high-powered shot at a nearby YMIR. The bullet penetrated the droid's mechanical brain, causing its head to implode. The remaining body collapsed to its knees and rang an alarm for five seconds before exploding; it destroyed the entire platform it was standing on along with its other residents.

The following confusion permitted Shepard to hit two more marks and Garrus to eliminate his final targets below with little effort. The pirates recovered quickly and were back on them, forcing the two vigilantes to dive for cover once more. Cera was caught in her right arm as she descended and dropped her rifle. "Shit!" She hissed through clenched teeth as she gripped her bleeding arm.

Jack immediately turned to her ally and ripped off a portion of her thick pants to make a tourniquet on Cera's arm. She continued gripping it, but the bleeding slowed to a trickle. She nodded a thank you to Jack who quickly took head and jumped over their cover to charge a closing Asari pirate. Jack gripped the alien's head and shattered the skull instantaneously, leaving her with a few entrails in her grasp. She thrust her other arm to her left and sent biotic energy waves into the support beams of a platform, forcing all those on it to jump, most not surviving. Jack dropped her pistol, retrieved her shotgun, and blew on oncoming Vorcha into small, meaty pieces. She then kicked her pistol back into her empty hand and dove into the largest group of enemies.

Garrus ascended to Cera's level using the cable and quickly fell to her side after noticing her injury. "Shepard!" Cera grinned painfully at him.

"After all these years, I'd thought we'd reached a first name basis, Garrus." He gave her what passed for a Turian smile and attempted to cover Cera's wound with a bandage.

"Doctor Chakwas will get you fixed up when we return to the Normandy."

"_If_ we return. Now get in there and help Jack! I can't handle my weapon right now, so give me your Viper." He relinquished the weapon without question and retrieved hers from the metal floor. He loaded it with his own thermal round and charged into the fight. Cera took a strip of adhesive from her pack and went about strapping her wounded arm to the gun she now possessed. Once finished, she sat up on her knees and faced over her crate. Six soldiers were ascending a staircase in the direction of the fallen platform and were headed towards Jack's location.

Cera aimed and pulled the unfamiliar trigger. It pulled easier and had much less recoil than her Widow. Her unfamiliarity with the gun caused the shot to miss but grabbed the attention of her targets. They possessed sub machine guns and assault rifles, all of which were currently burning through their respective barrels. Cera was slow, and didn't risk diving down unprepared, so she activated her active camouflage. The enemy knew she was there, but it increased the force of her shots. Seven rounds in the clip and six targets. Easy enough.

With them now at a closer range, she opened up on their heads and didn't miss a beat. Each fell from the high-powered armor piercing thermal rounds on the instant of impact. Her active camo disrupted just before the final target fell and had to fire two shots to end his life. After he crumpled, Cera reloaded while pivoting back to her right in order to cover her allies.

Coincidentally, they were both heading back together. Jack was clutching her right leg and limping while Garrus had her arm pulled over his shoulders for support. Shepard swiftly made her way to her allies while scanning the rest of the massive space. She couldn't find a single pirate who was ready to fight. The survivors were all standing down on the lower decks.

"I think we got all the fuckers," Jack stated nonchalantly.

"It appears that way. You two need to keep a watch on the survivors below. I'm going to radio in for some Cerberus forces to lock down this facility. Then that'll be the end of it." As she made her way the landing platform outside, she sighed deeply. It all went so wrong when it was going so well. Jack would have some explaining to do.

"And it's all running smoothly?"

"There were a few insurgents, but no casualties and all were detained."

"That's good to hear. I'm sorry it didn't go as you had planned, Shepard." Cera made a sobering grin.

"You had nothing to do with it."

Garrus looked down at his maintenance console. "Of course."

"Take care, Garrus." Her friend nodded in reply and the doors shut between the two as Cera left the weapons deck. Garrus had calibrations or what not.

The pirate facility was all the talk in the public quarter. The top deck was all business but nothing was happening down here so the Normandy's crew busied themselves with gossip and rumors. No crude rumors, of course. All were friends on Shepard's merry ship. Well, all except Jack. She had a knack for being unintentionally rude to anyone and everyone, which may have ironically been the reason for their mission's near failure. Chakwas had fixed Cera right up, but Cerberus was going to have to scrounge any resources they could from the fallen facility. Jack's leg injury was little compensation for her folly. Unlike her commander, Jack refused assistance from Chakwas and currently still suffered from her wound.

Shepard entered the elevator at the end of the hall and pressed the word ENGINEERING in the console on the inside of the elevator. The doors shut and descended one floor before parting. There was a beeping sound a minute later alerting Shepard that another person requested access to the ship's single elevator. Shepard stepped off and allowed the car to ascend. She turned and entered the first door on the left. Behind the door was a second door on the opposite side of the short room and a platform of steel grating descending into stairs that disappeared below the deck. Only a dim red light penetrated the darkness from below. Shepard clanked down the metallic stair to behold pure black beyond the overhead lamp of crimson.

This was curious as there was typically a bright lamp on a desk in the back of this undercarriage where the lone denizen of this cave, Jack, usually resided. Not a sound was made as Cera delved into the darkness and soon became consumed by it. All was red around her. The red lamps behind her and the solemn radiation of the mass effect core beyond. Dim red framed in pure black was all her swollen eyes could perceive. She felt as if she had been swallowed by an abyss of misery. The black, the red, the solitude; it sunk into her skull like a white hot knife. The commander collapsed after losing her balance and fell elegantly downward. She closed her eyes as the cold floor neared, permitting nothing but black to pervade her senses. Maybe this was what Jack felt all the time.

Her descent ended a moment before impact when a strong arm wrapped around her waist. Her eyes released, but still she saw nothing. However, breath was felt, heavy and musky, on her face. The dim red regarded Shepard kindly and allowed a silhouette of Subject Zero to appear from the black. She was a shining ruby goddess in Cera's eyes at this moment, but her mind reset itself. She had come down to discuss matters regarding the pirate facility, not waft in this dread; no matter how tempting that option was.

Shepard straightened herself on the floor, surprising Jack with the sudden shift. "Cera, I-" Cera silenced her with a visible sweep of her open hand.

"I don't want to hear any excuses or apologies. Just tell me what happened out there." Cera saw the ruby image kneel before her and turn its head down, leaving only the bald pallet of Jack's cranium in clarity. Shepard rested her back against the bulkhead behind her and rested her arm on an elevated knee.

"I…" Jack started, "I had no choice." Cera scoffed but allowed the escaped convict to proceed. "Look, after you followed pretty boy into his kiddy room, one of his rock-headed cronies made a grab for our guns. Regulation or some bull was their excuse, but they turned our guns on us with the plan to kill us once your little 'deal' was made. It was a trap from the start. I just rushed it." She fell back an inch, feeling well explained enough to avoid her superior's anger.

Cera sat wide eyed. She had expected something far worse, not something so protective. After a few seconds of silence, she laughed lightly. "If that's the case, then I suppose I can't hold you responsible." Jack looked up in an instant. Her expression was masked in darkness. "It wasn't a complete failure. We bagged the crew and got out with our heads. Well, at least in physical terms." The convict looked down at that remark. Another chuckle escaped the commander.

Jack rose a moment later and disappeared into the black, her ruby outline gone. Cera felt alone once more, and her eyes welled. She closed her eyes quickly to prevent from losing her emotional grasp. She didn't hear Jack again, but assumed that her mind was at ease. The black no longer held misery, but rather quiet contemplation. Cera smiled at that and turned to leave. She stopped in a second when a fleeting touch graced her shoulder. Her eyes closed again and she imagined Jack to be standing beside her, holding her breath.

Shepard decided it would be best to leave now, lest the black swallow her in a different way, and ascended the stairs leaving Jack standing with a grin on her face.


	3. We Have Drop Pods?

"Cera!"

Commander Shepard stopped mid-stride and turned towards the direction of the call. "Yes, Kelly?"

"The Illusive Man wants to see you in the conference room."

Shepard made a face towards the young girl, having hoped that Kelly would have said something else. The girl in question merely waved at her with an innocent smile and went back to her work on the console next to her. Cera sighed and began making her way to the back of the bridge. She decided to stop by the upgrade station on the way and browsed through the list of available enhancements. She moved her finger down the orange holo-display, highlighting individual upgrades as she scrolled down to the section labeled SQUAD UPGRADES. Mordin had made sure to organize it in a way that Shepard could review it easily. In the squad folder, she stroked her finger down again and selected the enhanced shotgun for Jack. That crazy serial killer would appreciate it.

After dispensing the necessary materials from the reserve held in the hull, the firearm began to be produced from behind the bulkhead. It would likely be completed after the Illusive Man had his word, so she departed from the room while giving Mordin a curt nod. The doors parted and she entered the room, strode to the console on the long table, and pressed a button that made the table fall into the floor. Cera casually walked onto the holo-projector that appeared in the table's absence and folded her arms behind her as she waited for the Illusive Man's projection to appear.

Darkness swallowed her but shortly revealed the timeless scene of the tumultuous sun in the distance and a stoic man with electronic eyes and what was likely to be his seventeen millionth cigarette in his relaxed grip. His legs were crossed and his back was going over the chair, so whatever he had to say obviously wasn't too important. Yet it was important enough to phone the commander personally.

"Shepard, I'm glad you could answer so timely." Shepard gave him a puzzled look. "That's sarcasm, Shepard. I've been here for twenty minutes. I have a game to watch in five, so don't ask any of those annoying questions that you tend to ask." The woman rolled her eyes dramatically and the Illusive Man coughed into his fist.

"Well?"

"Don't give me any lip, Shepard. Now, do you remember that god forsaken planet you retrieved the perfect krogan from?" The commander nodded thoughtfully. "There are some issues going on there that I honestly don't give two shits about. But", he took a long drag off his cigarette, "we have intercepted some radio transmissions that allude to an object of significant value. They apparently have a small shuttle of sorts that the Blue Suns use for smuggling. This shuttle is said to be small, fast, and capable of transporting cargo in a swift and timely manner while under heat. We could use this vehicle to great affect against the Collectors." The Illusive Man sucked on his cancer stick again, which was nearing the end of its life. "The planet is in too much turmoil for anyone but you to land and secure this object with success. You are to leave immediately. And put your hand down; there will be no arguing." He stamped out his cigarette and rose from his chair.

Cera sighed under her breath. "I'll organize my team, sir."

"I'm glad you're so complacent. Now go. I'll call you with further instruction later." The hologram dissipated and the conference room shifted back into view. Shepard let her head swing in ease. The holo-meetings did horrors to her head. She left the room, allowing the table to reassemble itself, and walked out to Kelly. The girl turned around and smiled genuinely.

"So, what did he have to say?" She was holding an electronic tablet over her chest and was staring with interested eyes.

Cera laughed softly at the girl's stance, confusing the poor thing. "Nothing too major. Just a new mission that I must leave for. Call Garrus down to the hanger and inform Joker that we're heading to Korlus."

"Right away, ma'am!" She turned around quickly and pressed a button on the console in front of her. "Garrus, Cer-, I mean Shepard needs you in the hanger ASAP." She nodded after a moment of silence. "I will." She closed down the comm. And turned to Cera. "He wanted me to tell you that he finished his calibrations for the evening." Shepard went slack jawed and Kelly moved her jaw back up. "I'll tell Mr. Moreau to take us to Korlus." She turned her head away. "And… be careful, Shepard."

Cera smiled back and turned towards the elevator. "I will, Kelly", she said as she entered the elevator car. It descended and the doors parted a floor later to reveal a well-armed Turian.

"Shepard, mind telling me where we're going this time?" he asked as he walked in and stood beside Cera.

"I'll tell you once we get into the shuttle. Suffice it to say, we're going to Grunt's home planet."

Garrus's head craned at that, closing his eyes painfully. "Seriously?"

"Seriously." He sighed and straightened himself.

The doors parted again and they both stepped out. "I'll meet you down there." She thrust a thumb towards the window that beheld the sight of the Normandy's hangar bay. "I'm getting Jack."

"Why didn't you just have Kelly call her?"

"Thought she might still be a bit depressed after her flounder at the pirate facility yesterday, so I figured I'd go fetch her myself."

Garrus turned to head down the steps to the shuttle bay. "Sure you don't just want to bring someone else?"

Shepard stopped at the doors to the engineering deck. "She needs a distraction. What's better for her than killing people?" Garrus chuckled and descended the stairs. Shepard turned back to the deck and descended her own flight of stairs to the morbid blackness of the undercarriage.

It felt like misery again. Jack must have gotten sad when Shepard left the night before. Or day. It was hard to keep track of time in space. She crept carefully in search of the scantily clad escapee, feeling around for any bits of skin or tight leather.

"Jack? You around here?" She decided that the best course of action for finding her quarry in this black environment would be to stand still and wait for it to reveal itself. "We're going to Korlus and I wanted to come get you myself." A moment passed and there wasn't a sound. The darkness was piercing her senses, and the pressure of time wasn't helping. _Why does she have to be so difficult?_ Shepard thought to herself.

After there wasn't an answer, she began to worry. The lamp was nowhere to be found and she was running out of time. Suddenly, her foot knocked against something and she fell forward into a heap of Cerberus commander. She sat up, attempting to regain control of her senses, and stretched her leg out in doing so. Her foot came into contact with something soft that moved when pressed. She instinctively recoiled but, after a moment, decided to investigate this strange phenomenon.

She ran her hands across the object before her which met with the sensation of smooth skin. She gasped at the realization that this was her ally and was instantly concerned. Quickly, she reached for where she assumed Jack's head to be and found it to be so. She pressed her fingers against the base of Jack's neck and waited. Jack's neck rose and fell at regular intervals and Shepard sighed with relief. It suddenly felt as though the room had brightened and she could see the ruby goddess sleeping soundly below her.

She smiled at the sleeping form but decided it would be best if she were to wake this woman, which she was less than eager to do. Never wake a serial killer. But, they were departing in, possibly, the next thirty minutes. She considered leaving Subject Zero alone for this mission and bringing Tali or Jacob, but she really wanted Jack on this one. Sighing, Shepard gripped the shoulders of the resting mass and shook gently. The ruby coated head swayed slightly and jolted up. The next thing Shepard felt was an impact on her stomach, forcing her to collapse once again.

Jack grabbed Shepard's head and tilted it up then gasped. "Shepard!" She pulled up her commander and straightened her as best she could. "The fuck you doing down here? I almost thought you were that cheerleader bitch."

Cera smirked at the insult towards her somewhat ruling officer. "Her hair is too long and her tits are too big." Jack laughed at that and reached behind her. Shepard heard a click and the undercarriage immediately lit up, making both women shriek.

"Fuck!" Jack yelled, covering her face. "I should have thought about that one."

"Yeah, you should have," Shepard replied while rubbing her eyes. She blinked several times and remained silent as her eyes adjusted to the newfound light source. After she could see sufficiently, she turned to Jack to see marks going down the convict's face. She was at first shocked, thinking it was an injury, but later noticed they were tear tracks. They looked a bit dirty, suggesting that they weren't fresh tears. Valuing Jack's pride, she chose not to mention them. But Garrus might. "Hey."

Jack looked up, completely oblivious to her supposed former sadness. "What?"

"There's something on your face." Jack touched her hand to her and pulled it back to look at her fingers. "Here, let me get it." Shepard pulled out a washcloth that she carried on board the ship, soaked it with her mouth, and held Jack still as she rubbed her cheeks.

"This isn't awkward."

"It shouldn't be. Now shut up and let me finish." She moistened the cloth once more before switching cheeks.

"Gross," Jack groaned. Cera scoffed. "What the hell is on my face, anyway?"

"Just some dirt," Cera said nonchalantly. After her friend's face was clean, she tucked the cloth away and let go of Jack slowly. The woman stared at her strangely. "Well, hey, we're leaving in about twenty minutes to go to Korlus."

"Korlus? Why that shithole?"

"Chain-smoker told me to." Jack laughed at the remark and turned around to retrieve her shotgun. Before she reached it, Shepard placed the upgraded version in her ally's open palm. Jack looked up at her. "I had some spare resources and thought you might appreciate the new weapon." She had grabbed it on her way out of the conference room. She had been afraid that the black man was going to talk about spilling drinks on the Citadel again.

Jack just looked down, looked up, looked down, looked up, and stared. A barely noticeable tinge of red appeared in her cheeks before disappearing from view. "Um… thanks, Cera." She holstered the weapon and turned to leave quickly. "Can't stand around, can we?" Shepard smiled at the woman's behavior and followed shortly after.

Space is a frightening thing. No gravity, no oxygen for sound to travel through, heat concentrated in the most odd pockets, and the rest being absolutely freezing. It's even more frightening when one can't see what's happening.

Shepard and her crew had been sitting like idiots in the drop ship for the past twenty minutes, waiting for Joker to tell them that they were dropping. Cera had already briefed her companions as best she could and then asked them if they ever considered having hair. Joker had been updating them every five minutes over the comms, but failed to tell them when they would be arriving. He just said things such as, "Arriving at mass relay," and, "Activating thrusters." Joker indeed.

After a moment, Jack spoke up. "So, we're going in a hot zone, right?"

Shepard had been staring at the side of their ship. "Huh? Oh, uh, yeah, I would think so. There's some kind of rebellion going on or whatever."

"Does this hunk of shit have drop pods?"

Shepard cringed at the insult to her ship, but thought about Jack's question. She hadn't ever really thought about it before. As far as she was concerned, it was the same thing as the first one. At least in her fantasy world it was. She decided it was worth looking into with the extra time. "I'm not sure. Let's find out." She opened the shuttle and the three stepped out then began scouring the bay for anything that looked like a giant, metal tube of toothpaste.

"These looks… promising." Garrus said, enunciating so both his comrades would hear. The two women converged on his location and all three stood and stared at five man-sized capsules, white as the rest of the sterilized ship. Cera approached one and read a note on the side. It read ALL-TERAIN ONE-MAN ORBITAL DROP POD.

"Hm. Seems we found them. Kinda surprised I didn't know they existed. These would have been handy on the Collector's carrier." Jack walked up to another and looked up at it. It was only a head taller than her and she was one of the shorter crew members. Garrus pressed a release switch, popping open their carriages. The insides possessed no viable illumination and only consisted of five imbedded monitors going vertical across the inside near the hatch, what appeared to be small speakers, and padding and bracing of multiple durable materials lining the entirety of the interior.

"I don't think I'll fit, Shepard." Cera turned to Garrus then turned to the pod. They were most definitely made for human forms and not Turians. She frowned at this fact.

"It appears so. And Jack's got a point. We could really use these for our operation, considering it is a hot zone and we likely won't be returning on our own vessel." She turned to Garrus. "I'm sorry, Garrus. Go up and bring Miranda." Jack coughed violently. "Er, try Mordin. He's small."

"He might have a heart attack going through the atmosphere." Cera laughed at the joke. She thought about who would be a viable replacement for Garrus. Then it hit her.

"Get Thane. He's on your floor anyway. I'll radio Joker and tell him we're using the pods." Thane was about the size and shape of a human and was at least on par with Garrus in terms to accuracy with a rifle. He, too, used the M-97 Viper and could prove useful in a battlefield.

Garrus nodded solemnly and headed for the stairs up. Jack walked around the bay as Shepard brought her wrist to her mouth. "Joker." A moment passed before Jeff Moreau's voice penetrated the speakers.

"Yes, commander?"

"We're using the drop pods. Bring us into low orbit once we arrive in Korlus." Another moment.

"Drop pods? EDI, are there ODPs on board?"

"Yes. There are five. All are located on the port side of the hangar bay. All are fully functioning. They appear to be open, however."

Cera was only moderately surprised that EDI knew that. "That would be our fault. Can we use them?" Thane strode up to them and nodded to each before peering at the pods himself.

"Sure thing. There're some controls here that say something about the pods. Get into them and I'll launch 'em once we attain the correct trajectory." Cera heard some rambling between Joker and the AI but couldn't discern what they said. "Sorry. After _EDI_ attains the correct trajectory."

"It is safest for an artificial intelligence to coordinate the launching of pods."

There was more bickering over the comms and it disappointed Shepard that she couldn't hear them better.

"Fine, EDI. We'll do it your way. Shepard? I'm going to bring the Normandy to the orbit of Korlus and then Miss Regulations here will launch you down to the surface."

"I am not a 'Miss', Mr. Moreau. I am-"

"A damned computer, I know!"

Their argument continued for some time after, all the while Shepard changed comms channels to the Crew's Quarters. "Garrus? You up there?"

"Why, yes, I am. What is it you need, Shepard?" He sounded excited. Shepard felt bad that she wouldn't be bringing him along for this one.

"I'm gonna fill up all these pods. Go into the mess hall and tell Billy Maxton and Shelle Kirkman to get down here. Do watch the ship while I'm gone, Garrus."

"I will, Shepard…" He cut the channel and Cera looked down at her feet. She considered just taking the shuttle so Garrus could come. Knowing what they were going into, though, that might have been a poor choice. But she couldn't prevent the thought from pervading her thoughts nevertheless.

A hand on her chin made her jolt up. Jack stood there looking at her for a moment before returning her gaze to the pods. "Don't worry about the Turian. I think he's badass enough to keep his crests till the next mission." Shepard smiled at the reassurance.

The requested troops strode into the hangar bay in full battle regalia; Maxton carrying both a Tempest and Carnifex and Kirkman with a Mantis. "Reporting for duty, Commander Shepard!" Kirkman said, both saluting. Cera retuned the courtesy and gestured towards the pods.

"Take a quick look at them then strap in. We'll be dropping soon. I'll give further orders just before we do. For now, I'll upload all available satellite data to the pods so you can review them while we wait." The two newcomers nodded and tackled the bulky devices. Shepard, Jack, and Thane followed suit shortly thereafter.


	4. It Wasn't Always Barren

But, then again, space doesn't stop being daunting even when face-to-face with it. The endless vacuum, negative two hundred and seventy degrees Celsius, and black as the deepest trenches of the sea, is deadly and frightening when caught in the midst of it. Even the venerable Shepard, who had spent her entire life onboard starships and cruisers, grew pale as she descended towards a planet's atmosphere. Monitors to her right displayed her four allies all just as pale and frightened as she, except Thane who always looked pale and Jack who always seemed to be out of fucks to give. Her teeth rattled in her skull violently as she punched through the atmosphere. The ODPs lacked the fantastical viewports of science fiction due to the danger it posed, so she could only assume what was occurring past the thick plate of metal alloy. Cera assumed that the exterior of the pod was white hot and, by now, she could feel it. After a moment, the heat decreased slightly but her ears exploded as sound penetrated the pod.

The heat, the sound, and the incessant shaking made the trip nearly unbearable. Shepard, jaws clenched, turned her head down one more to the faces of her comrades. They had their heads turned up, with the exception of Jack once again. Jack grinned at her through the screen and Shepard returned with a toothy smile. She then turned to a counter to her left that indicated how far in the air she was. It really was only there for the occupant's curiosity as the entire thing was automated and ejected the necessary break when it was required.

The numbers were falling away like sand through fingers. She couldn't decipher the distance to the surface, but was reassured by the fact that everything in the pod was functioning correctly. Her entire frame rattled as the break was released from the top and broke off seconds later. Almost immediately after that, her mind exploded and her body quaked as the pod came to a complete stop. Acting quickly despite having just been rocked, Cera grasped the handle on the hatch and yanked it hard enough the wrench it off. Doing so made it blow outward and she went about removing her bracings. Before even glancing outside into the blinding light, she looked to her comrade's visuals to see that Thane was still in descent, Jack and Kirkman were both absent, and Maxton's screen was filled with static. Her heart clenched imagining what had become of Maxton. She prayed it was only a result of the impact.

Braces removed, she bounded from the pod and hit the ground ten feet down. She stood for a moment as her eyes adjusted to the newfound light and looked about her. No signs of life but she noticed fire over the urban canopy. Korlus was once sprawled with massive cities but, after years of civil war and foreign conflict, was nothing more than a hub of black market trade, gang operations, and a constant war zone. However, the current conflict seemed to be a bit more than the average skirmish.

She drew her newly acquisitioned Phalanx heavy pistol and activated the electronic disruptor ammo. She knew how much pirates fancied their shields. She checked the heads-up-display in her targeting visor and turned to her right to follow her marker north. She had landed a few kilometers off her designated landing zone, but that would be more than easy to make up for.

She broke into a sprint and began traversing the steel jungle. Metal plates bent under her and groaned from long forgotten weight. Walls towered around her and she was constantly met with obstacles made by warped beams and craters from wars of the past. It looked much like the region where she had procured Grunt from with his tank. The only difference was that it was slightly brighter and the constructs seemed a little more decrepit.

She wheeled around as she heard a synthesized voice declare something unintelligible. Meters away from her stood a trio of LOKI mechs riddled with dust. Their eyes already red, Shepard assumed that they were being used as soldiers in this battle. However, to the supposed dismay of their buyers, they fell easily. Three shots from her pistol dropped each in sequence, meriting a quick reload back to the maximum capacity of six. She approached the fallen mechs and knelt down to one. Removing the head plate, Cera used her omni-tool to scan its wiring in hopes of acquiring some information. She was duly satisfied when her HUD became covered in enemy battle strategies. Judging by how the formations turned inward, she reckoned that these were the plans of the rebels.

The crew had originally decided against the use of communication links for this mission in case any enemy force caught wind of their presence, but they would benefit greatly from this recovered information. Besides, it would be a nice gift to the Blue Suns that fought the rebels.

She opened the comms link to her crew and spoke. "Redhead calling for status of crew." They had also chosen nicknames earlier not wanting to make themselves targets if their adversaries ever heard them communicate.

"Freaky Bitch coming in clear." Jack's voice stated rather cheerfully through the radio. There was little static so Shepard assumed that there were no jamming devices active and/or Jack was nearby, which made Cera slightly excited. It was always a show to watch Jack on the field.

"Fishface hears you," Thane said, sighing. Shepard and Jack laughed uncontrollably over the comms. They had managed to convince Thane to use the rather demeaning term claiming that their enemies would, "Never guess that you're a Drell," which was quite the lie.

Silence ensued as they waited for Maxton's reply. When none came, Shepard's breath caught in her throat and Kirkman spoke up. "Dirty Cunt reporting." Another exasperated sigh and more uncontrollable laughing from Cera and Jack. "I hate you guys."

"We love our bitches," Jack said.

"I know you wouldn't have called us so soon after drop unless you found something, Redhead." Thane stated, cutting straight to the chase.

"Of course, enough goofing." She said, sniffling. "Anyway, I've found the current battle plans of the rebels and thought it might be useful. Uploading map now." She waited for three green lights to tick on her HUD before continuing. "Keep this channel closed for now. Open a private channel if you find anything and I'll go public. Redhead over and out"

"Freaky bitch out."

A sigh. "Fishface out…" More laughter.

"Stupid bitch."

"Oh please. You're not getting out easy," Jack chided.

The most exaggerated sigh Shepard had ever witnessed pervaded the speakers of her communication device. "_Dirty Cunt out…_" Shepard could hear Jack crying over that one, especially since their enemies were likely listening to this and shaking their heads. The comms cut after Shepard decided she was done gushing over Jack's laughing. Hopefully the Blue Suns now knew they were crazy.

Shepard had been walking while talking to her team to make good time and had managed to reach a ridge that overlooked a portion of the battlefield. She saw that the base of the complex that held their quarry was a mere kilometer away with only a few dozen soldiers caught in frantic battle in her way. Checking the rebels' map, she noticed that this was one of the flanking areas noted in their strategy and, by the look of things, it was going in their favor. The Blue Suns were on the defensive and were swiftly retreating into the construct behind them that strongly resembled a parking structure back on Earth.

Shepard sat down and waited patiently for them to fall back and for the rebels to pursue. However, that plan was shattered by a ripple of energy cutting the battlefield in half, destroying many of the Blue Sun's remaining forces there. The focus of the troops turned in the direction of the disturbance which Cera saw to be none other than the escaped convict Subject Zero.

It felt like it had been days, weeks, even months since she'd seen the woman when it had been only a little under an hour. She smiled brightly but chose to stay on her ridge till her adversaries were dealt with.

She reached to her back and retrieved the Widow. She quickly found an outcropping with which to use as a hold, sighted, and took out a Blue Suns Centurion. His head erupted in a show of red that glinted fantastically in the glow of the sun. The most powerful soldier defeated, the remaining mercenaries in their blue and white armor followed their allies into the large building. Shepard wasn't about to let them leave and alert them to the presence of others if they hadn't been found out already.

Before leaving on the mission, Shepard had made good to grab a prototype weapon that Cerberus had asked her to test on the field. It was said to be capable of eliminating entire squads in a single lance of electricity. It was called the Arc Projector and had the shape of no weapon she had ever seen, but now would be as good a time as any to test both its range and just how many targets it could get. She laid the Widow down for a moment, held the Projector as best she knew how, aimed, held the charge, and watched as it sparked then shot a massive bolt across the entire battlefield to her targets. She didn't get to see it make contact as the recoil had sent her tumbling to the ground behind her. Moaning, she got to her feet, immediately observing the aftermath of the shot. There were certainly Blue Suns corpses where she had shot and there was the same number she had seen. A successful test, then.

She again turned her attention to Jack who had just finished sweeping the remaining rebels and looked up in disbelief at her commander, but grinned at her sight. Packing her weapons, Shepard slid down the ridge and ran towards Jack. The killer thought fast and jumped at Shepard before the veteran could react, forcing them both to the ground. Jack laughed as she pulled at Cera's cheeks.

"Ha ha! Look what I caught!" She said while having fun with Shepard's face.

"I'm more fouble fen you might fink", Cera replied, impaired by the toying of her cheeks.

Jack doubled over off of Cera laughing. "You sound so funny like that!"

"Yeah, yeah. Get it all out." Shepard rolled her eyes and waited patiently as Jack calmed down. "Now that that's done with, can we move on with this?"

Jack frowned at the coldness of her comrade then scoffed while rising. "Hell, I don't give a fuck."

"Why are you getting so bitchy all of a sudden?" Cera got to her feet and brushed dust of her leg plates.

"Me? Look at you!"

Cera sighed. "What if I told you I wanted to get this over and done with so we could talk in the privacy of your hole?" Jack closed her mouth and looked down an inch. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Now come on," she said as she hit Jack's arm, "Let's get this damned ship Mister Chain-smoker wants so badly."

Jack's appearance returned to her indifferent visage though a bit lighter. "Fuck ya. Time to smash some heads." She pulled out her new shotgun and stood next to Shepard waiting for the next move.

Cera took out the Widow and looked to the towering fortress of warped bars and rusting metal. "I'd like to wait for the rest of the team, but we can't lose this opening here before it's reinforced. Let's get in there."

A wall shattered behind the two women and fell into pieces between them. The duo then returned to cover behind the metal crate they had made their home five minutes prior.

"You know, it would have been a huge fucking help if someone could have told us there'd be god damned Krogans here." Jack loaded her firearm for the third time and relinquished her cover for a second to eliminate an injured Krogan coming their way.

"No kidding," Shepard gasped, exasperated. "But, there's nothing we can do about it now. Just smash the bastards." Cera laughed a bit. "Heh. They're tank-born. They _are_ bastards." Jack couldn't help but smirk at the comment as well. "Now do your thing. I'm going to risk the comms channel and see if we can't get Thane, Kirkman, or both in here." Jack nodded and chose to forsake her cover once more.

"I'll destroy you all!" she yelled before sending out a massive shockwave of biotic energy before her sending two unarmored Krogan to their knees and another one into the abyss of the lower levels.

"Fishface, Dirty Cunt, come in." She found it immensely difficult to keep the charade going while in a serious situation.

"Eh, Fishface copies. However, I am… engaged. I will be un-" a shot rang over Thane's side. "Unable to respond at this time. I'll report back once I'm finished here." The channel cut a moment later.

"I'm here. What's the news?" Shepard was glad that at least one other person was unoccupied and in contact.

"None. Me and Bitch have been caught in the complex, third floor in the southwest section, and we need immediate assistance. We got Krogan tank-borns; loads of them."

"Hold on a second." Kirkman was silent for a second. "I'm almost there. Try to throw a cable down the west railing from your position when I get to you."

"Will do." Jack threw another shockwave, destroying another two Krogan. Mercenaries continued to pour in from the doors at the end of the section they were in, and the dynamic duo was quickly running short on ammunition. Jack was sending out more heavy shockwaves then she could count and Shepard was doing what she could with her incineration tech to remove their enemies' armor.

The familiar sound of a Mantis round ricocheted over their heads minutes later and Cera threw out another blast before turning around. She approached the south railing, as their conversations were likely being listened in on and, therefore, the west railing would have been watched. She pulled out her jump cable, clasped it to the rail, and pulled the end hook out before tossing it over the edge to watch it as it fell. Three stories down stood Kirkman, her armor a little worse for wear but nothing major from what Cera could tell from this distance. The grounded woman grabbed it and scaled the wall up as the cable automatically retracted. Shepard had taken cover beside Jack once more as the crazy lady sent another mercenary sailing across the room. Kirkman reached their floor and slid next to them, handing Shepard her cable. She also retrieved a few canisters of thermal rounds from a pack on her hip. The duo grinned as they grabbed them from their ally greedily.

"Jesus. Didn't think you'd be that eager." She spoke plainly, as their comms would be a senseless idea this close. They weren't Spartans.

"Are you kidding me? This is a godsend! I was almost forced to use my shittastic SMG!" Shepard waved the useless object before stowing it and pulling out the Widow to rearm it. Kirkman rolled her eyes and turned to her right.

"Now Jack, I hope you don't-" she stopped when she realized no one was there. "Um, where is she?" Cera looked out into the room and saw Jack charging towards a pair of Krogan with nothing but her newly armed shotgun. Cera sighed and leaped over the crate towards the rash woman.

"Wait, there's too many to go out there!" Realizing that her protests were useless, Kirkman groaned and hoisted her Mantis to cover her allies.

Her Phalanx pistol out, Shepard came up next to Jack and popped a Krogan in the face. "I know it's exciting to have more ammo but, really?"

Jack turned to her right and blew a mercenary's left leg off and turned to her left towards another as he started screaming. Cera let her take the shot before pulling her down to nearby cover as their shields shattered. "Oh come on! I was kicking some ass right there!" Cera smacked her cheek hard.

"Your ass kicking can be held in check for now. I'd rather you didn't die." Jack was about to punch her friend off her until she saw Cera's face. She wore a look of genuine concern and fear she had never seen before and Jack suddenly felt guilt flood into her.

"I-"

"No. Now stay down. Don't go into the open unless I say so."

"I-" she repeated but stopped. "Yes..."

Cera smirked. "Thanks, Jack." She kissed the killer on her head quickly before moving to a more guarded part of the crate they crouched by. A mantis round punctured a blue suit nearby as Jack's cheeks reddened for a moment. She shook her head to regain her composure and slid next to the commander.

A few more rounds were fired before a panel fell from the ceiling in the center of the room and a certain green Drell hit the ground after it. He fired a few pistol rounds behind him and located Shepard.

"Shepard!" he said as he fell in next to her, Kirkman covering his descent. He looked around for a moment. "You seem to be done here."

"We'd be dead if Kirkman hadn't come in. Speaking of which, you haven't seen any sign of Maxton, have you?" Thane shook his head solemnly. "Tch. Well, I suppose there's nothing we can do about that. But, it appears you came for more than just to help us." He nodded before speaking again.

"I found the ship that the Illusive Man spoke of." Cera's eyes widened but let her fishy friend continue. "It's two floors up and heavily guarded. I hid a cable up there so, once this room is cleared, we can get straight up there." Shepard patted his shoulder.

"Good work. Remember to keep an eye out for Maxton." He nodded stoically and looked over the crate only to watch as the last enemy in the vicinity, a Krogan, was hurled over the northwest railing by what may have been the ten thousandth shockwave of the day. Jack stood and was shortly joined by Kirkman who was reloading. The two spread across the room to retrieve thermal canisters for current and later use. "Well, I guess we head up. Thane, set us up." The Drell stowed his weapon and jumped up the opening he had made a few minutes ago, grabbed something in the black, and hit the ground with an extended cable with attached hook.

"It's only strong enough to carry two people at a time so it'll take two trips."

"It's fine. You and Kirkman will go first. Jack and I will stay down here until you return the cable in case reinforcements arrive."

"Or you just want some… time." Kirkman said, looking between the commander and her close killing ally.

Jack scoffed. "Totally. Now get your bitch ass up there before I toss you up there." Kirkman laughed before holding onto Thane as he tugged the cable to force it into retracting. They ascended up into the hole and disappeared, leaving Jack and Shepard in near complete silence. Explosions could be heard from below, but they seemed so distant and insignificant. It was bright outside but shadows permeated the complex where they now stood.

Jack had holstered her gun and was rubbing her left arm nervously. Cera looked at her. "Is something wrong?"

"Huh?"

Cera smiled at her. "Nothing." Jack looked at her oddly but still had her hand on her arm.

After a few more moments of near absolute silence, awkward for Jack but not so much for the blissful Shepard, Jack cleared her throat and spoke. "Um, not sure if this is a huge help, but I saw Maxton's pod a mile east of here. It was empty but, I thought I should tell you."

Cera's eye twitched. "Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"I didn't find him, so I didn't think it was important."

"Not important? You found his empty pod! That's enough to let me know he didn't burn up in the atmosphere or die on impact!"

Jack looked away. "I hadn't thought about that."

"Of course you didn't." She crossed her arms and turned her attention to the hole in the ceiling. Jack didn't return her gaze to the captivating woman, but merely shut her eyes, continuously stroking her arm.

Only a few more seconds passed before the now empty hook descended mechanically to stop at Cera's feet. She fit her foot through the hook, held the cable with her left arm, and extended her other to the short woman. "Come on. Let's get this over with, huh?" Jack looked over to her. "I'm glad you told me at all. I guess there really isn't much we could have done with that information, anyway. Now come over here, you sensitive serial killer." Jack glared at Cera incredulously but stepped over to the commander. Shepard pulled Jack into her, wrapping her arm around the woman, and pulled the cable. Jack held onto her shoulders and pressed her face into Shepard's shoulder plate. Cera laughed. "Don't get too comfortable, now. Still got a few more people to kill." Jack remained silent and didn't move other than to hold tighter to the point that Shepard could feel the pressing finger tips through her suit.

Cera always found it to be a strange phenomenon that a usually enraged murderer could melt down into such innocent and vulnerable states when in her presence. Maybe she did it around others, but, if so, Cera never saw it. Or heard about it. Nor was anything of the sort spoken of in the records on Subject Zero. Or ever mentioned by the woman herself. And she had no friends Cera knew of, leaving her with the conclusion that she was the exception to the rule. That made her a little giddy. She just hoped it wouldn't affect Jack adversely.

Jack remained clinging to Cera as they emerged on the top floor. They both stepped off the hook, or Shepard stepped off the hook and Jack stepped off Shepard, then Thane retrieved the cable from the conveniently placed shack that was above the hole. The star above them burned brightly, forcing Shepard to squint. Jack just bore a look of apathy.

"We're behind where they're keeping the vehicle. Me and Kirkman are set up, so just give us the signal and we'll go in."

"Thank you, Thane. Let's get that ship and get the hell out of here." She heard the musical tunes of clipping and grinding weapons as her party prepared for the oncoming fight. This wouldn't affect the outcome of the rebellion here, but it certainly called an end to the Normandy crew's presence.

After a quick look over her allies, she signaled them to move and they sprang around the corners of the shack to where their quarry was docked, and saw the limp body of Will Maxton.


	5. If Everything were Stained by Blood

"How nice of you to… 'drop in', Commander Shepard." Four black, beady eyes stared back at the Normandy's ground crew. Shepard aimed her Widow at the Batarian and her allies followed her example. The alien laughed before swinging his arm behind him. At that moment, four eerily familiar figures emerged from behind a bizarre vehicle. Collectors. "So good to see you. I hear you came here for this, did you not?" He waved at the vehicle. It was a sleek brown and chrome like the platforms the Collectors used in their carriers. Small cylinders poked up in various places on it and the overall shape was that of a horizontal pill; a capsule of sorts with geometric shapes spanning its reflective surface.

"Might be. What's it to you?" Cera kept her weapon level but eyed the Collectors warily.

The Batarian laughed. "Well, your boss had other plans for you, so you won't be getting this ship. But you'll be going in it." The Batarian drew his own weapon, a Vindicator assault rifle, and the Collectors advanced with theirs. Shepard quickly blew apart one of the aliens' heads before diving for cover. Jack sent them flying then followed Cera while Thane and Kirkman hid in the opposite direction. Additional Blue Suns mercenaries came from behind the remaining Collectors. "You know," the Batarian leader yelled over the roaring fire, "we could all save a lot of time if you just surrendered. Get me a helluva lot more money, too."

"Fuck you!" Jack retorted, sending a few mercs over the edge of the building with a heavy shockwave and others scuttling for cover. "You're not scraping a finger over her!" She relinquished her cover for another moment to destroy an oncoming Collector with her shotgun. Kirkman tore off the leg of the third Collector with a shot from her Mantis and Thane followed through with shot to its head as it collapsed.

One former-Prothean remained. Before Shepard could place a bullet between its two inner-eyes, the air around it ruptured and it rose a couple feet. Its skin shattered, leaving bright, yellow cracks covering the entire creature. A barrier rose around it and it yelled in an otherworldly voice. "Assuming direct control."

"Shit." Shepard punctured the Batarian leader's skull and Jack removed the last of the Blue Suns present.

"Is it a bad time to say 'I saw this coming'?" Jack said as she placed a few thermal shells into her firearm. Cera merely rolled her eyes and activated her Tungsten ammo. Thane pulled out his Viper and aimed just as the Harbinger doll sent a ball of dark energy into Kirkman, shoving her violently out of cover. Before Thane could pull her back down, Harbinger thrust an orb of fire at her.

"My attacks will tear you apart." Harbinger exclaimed as Shepard watched her comrade burn helplessly. She screamed for a few seconds before her body disintegrated next to Thane and Cera covered her eyes. Jack clenched her teeth and activated her warp ammo swiftly then shot the puppet-creature's barrier off.

She yelled as she ran at Harbinger and hit it full on, knocking it to the ground where Thane and Cera simultaneously shot their snipers into its head. The puppet's skin retracted and its eyes dimmed, leaving an empty husk on the concrete roof of the complex. Jack rose but continued to stare down.

Bodies littered the roof; Collectors, Blue Suns, and the late Maxton. Thane and Cera searched the area for anyone else and returned to the Collectors' vessel after finding nothing. They filed their weapons away and Thane went to grab Maxton's corpse as Cera approached Jack.

"What the fuck happened, Shepard!?" Jack yelled, throwing the commander off guard, but her gaze remained trained on the Collector.

"We- we had no idea what we were walking into. There was no intel given on the ship or any adversaries outside of the Blue Suns and the local rebels. We all did our best."

"And look what 'our best' accomplished!" Jack gestured to the chaos left in the wake of the battle. "'Our best' got two of our crewmates killed, Shepard!"

Cera winced at the tone of her voice. "I know that, Jack, but there's nothing that can be done about it. Now let's just use this ship and get the hell out of here before we die, too." Thane stayed out of the argument and turned towards the prize ship. "Besides, I thought you didn't give a damn about the deaths of others." At that, Jack clenched her teeth and fists while staring at the blood-coated cement.

Thane, with Maxton over his left shoulder, starting searching for an opening on the bizarre contraption. He quickly found two finger-sized holes on the starboard side. He inserted two fingers and tugged on it. The action made that portion slide to the side, revealing its dark interior. It was apparently a troop transport as there were seats lining the sides; much like the Normandy's own shuttle. Thane stepped in and placed Maxton's body gently on the floor of the vehicle, placed a handkerchief from his pocket over the head, and located the cockpit. Cera boarded it and turned back to look at Jack.

"Jack, we have to go. I'll be sure to yell at the chain-smoker in charge once we return." She seated herself and waited a few moments before Jack appeared through the entrance and sat opposite Shepard near the late Maxton. She tapped the opposite side of the holes Thane had touched earlier, making it shut. The only light now came from the spackled viewport, which was not unlike what a window made from bronze bug wings might look like.

"Mind you, I don't know what I'm doing up here." Thane stated as he searched for the correct controls among the multitude of identical buttons and switches lining the interior of the cockpit.

"Just start pushing buttons," Jack suggested casually.

Thane stared at her. "No." Jack shrugged.

"Just throwing down ideas."

"I'd rather not kill all of us. Siha, contact EDI."

Cera sighed and pressed her mic to her mouth. Jack glared at her through the dark. "EDI, this is Shepard. We've acquired the ship but we can't drive the damn thing."

The earpiece on Shepard's headset filled with the familiar synthetic but feminine voice of the Normandy's onboard AI. "I can control it from here, though it won't be as smooth a ride if it were controlled manually. I would advise that you and your allies hold onto something." The three did as instructed.

The ship jolted a foot off the ground before rising quickly towards the atmosphere. The vehicle rocked some but was remarkably smooth for a vessel created by puppets. They were being controlled by the Reapers, though, so Cera assumed that had something to do with it.

Jack leaned back, still holding onto a hole in the wall behind her, but continued staring at Shepard. After a few moments, the commander took notice. "I told you, I'll bring it up with the Illusive Man. We can make-"

"That's not what I'm on about," Jack cut Cera off, but turned her gaze away. "It doesn't matter, so don't even bother asking."

"Jack…" Cera trailed off, realizing she wouldn't be getting anything out of the serial killer right now and just decided to sit in silence with the others.

"Why do you always got to pull this shit on us!"

"Shepard, I do what I must because I can. That ship you acquired could prove invaluable in the days to come. So, yes, I told the Collectors you'd be there. But I knew you could handle them." The Illusive Man tapped his cigarette on the side of his chair casually.

"At what cost? We lost two good soldiers today because of your 'necessities'. This shit has got to stop or I'm going to take matters into my hands."

"Watch it, Shepard. I'll recall all the materials and resources I've given you if you decide to be rash like that. I didn't want to do what I did, and I'm sorry about your crew members, but I do what must be done for the good of humanity. Some sacrifices have to be made for the greater good."

"I'd rather figure this shit out myself instead of being betrayed every time we try to do something."

He stood from his chair and turned away from the holo-form of Cera. "I know this is difficult but, please, bear with me on this. The Collectors and the Reapers must be stopped. If I need to pull a few strings here and there to do so, then I will. Now I have to go. Take care, Shepard."

The transmission ended and Shepard threw her arms around as she stormed out of the room. "That son of a bitch! Can't he fuck with someone else's crew? I swear to god, if I ever meet that god damned chain smoker, I'll rip out his esophagus and choke him with it!"

"Cera?" Shepard wheeled around to find Kelly's soft gaze resting on her. She relaxed slightly and approached the timid secretary. "Was it that bad?"

Shepard scoffed as she leaned against the counter beside Kelly. "When is it not? He thinks he can just do whatever he wants; throw away lives needlessly, just for his ridiculous sense of justice. I'll bet he takes red sand through his rectum." The smaller red head cringed at the mental image Cera's words created.

"Cera, that's sick."

"Ah, but it's true, I'm sure."

"Maybe he packs his cigarettes with hallex."

Shepard laughed at the comment while nodding. "I can believe that!" They both laughed softly before Cera patted her shoulder. "Well, I need to go below deck to check on our local serial killer. She seemed tense about something earlier. Talk later?"

Kelly smiled brightly. "Of course, Cera. I need to speak with Dr. Solus for a bit, anyway. Good luck with Jack. You're gonna need it."

Shepard laughed again before approaching the elevator and descending to the fourth floor of the Normandy.

News of the last mission had left the whole crew wary of the Illusive Man's intentions. The deaths of two fellow crewmates put the others on edge. While some doubted their trust in the Illusive man, others doubted theirs in Shepard. She wasn't about to let negative thoughts corrode the wills of her allies, so she chose to be strong and prove to them that a mishap like that wouldn't happen again. She planned on putting to a few individuals' minds at ease, Jack being the first and most important on Cera's list.

She quickly passed through the doors and strode down the steps to the lowest loft of the ship to find Jack laying upside-down off her cot with a half-burned cigarette held between her teeth.

"Jack." The maniac in question casually turned her head to face Shepard. "Where'd you get that cigarette?" She'd made sure to let her crew know that smoking wasn't allowed on the ship. Insane, killing lunatics were included.

"They're not that hard to find, Shepard." She mumbled.

"Well, wherever you found it, we can't be smoking up our ship."

"There's vents. And, even if there aren't, who gives a fuck? I don't," she stated as she returned to staring blankly at a rafter above her.

Cera closed her eyes for a moment and breathed slowly before approaching Jack. "What's gotten into you, Jack?" The commander was unaccustomed to her friend acting like this in private; not since they had first met, anyhow. But, after all that had happened so far, she expected more out of the woman.

"What's gotten into me?" She rolled off the cot and dropped the cigarette on the ground to smash it with her boot. "I know enough about Drell to know that 'Siha' isn't a title given to simple friends."

Shepard's eyes widened. She hadn't expected this to be the issue on Jack's mind when she had glared at her. She hadn't even really noticed that Thane called her that, having gotten used to it herself. "I- that's a ridiculous notion. If there was anything going on between us, it wouldn't be a secret."

"He didn't seem to be overly secretive. I sit down here all day with people who don't give a shit. I'd be the last to know about this."

"There is no 'this'. I just console him and he's grown comfortable enough around me to start calling me that. I was uneasy about it at first but, what can you do? I already told him that nothing would come of us and he seemed perfectly content being my friend and that's that."

Jack's eyes narrowed but she sat back down and sighed. "I just thought that…" she trailed off, knowing it wouldn't matter. "You know how I am."

Shepard chuckled and sat next to Jack. "I know. I think it's sweet you care so much." Jack punched her in the arm. "Hey, that's a compliment!"

"Not for me." Shepard laughed again before Jack spoke. "Well, um, did you bitch out the Illusive Dick?"

Cera smiled and replied a moment later. "Why yes I did. I don't think I got through to him, though. He just kept going on about how all our sacrifices are his to make and how fucking necessary they are. The same load of bull I always get. Did you think he'd get on his knees and beg my forgiveness for all his sins?"

"No, but that would be something if he did." They both laughed coldly before sitting in silence. Jack leaned back against the bulkhead and crossed her arms. Shepard twiddled her thumbs, glancing behind her every minute or so.

"Hey, we talked. Don't you have other places to be? Or are you the one with something to say?"

Shepard turned to protest, but realized that Jack was right. She looked down and turned away to resume her all-important thumb twiddling. Jack's visage softened and she touched Cera's arm, startling the Spectre.

"I… I'll listen to anything you have to say, Cera."

"My name sounds an awful lot like Siha."

"Don't push it, princess." Cera made a scowl which Jack could see the edge of. "Don't like that, do you? So don't bring that up."

Cera leaned back and scooted up against Jack. Jack nudged her which got her one back. This carried on for a minute before Jack socked Shepard in the arm.

"Hey, I'm just playin'!"

"Maybe I am, too," Jack retorted. Cera smirked and leaned against the woman beside her. Jack opened her mouth to speak but thought better of it. After their dealings on Korlus, she felt a fair bit more comfortable around her commander. So she settled for returning the gesture by laying her head on Cera's and resting in each other's presence.


	6. When Does the Media End?

With one pleasantly down, another near-important soul needed to be calmed and done so with caution.

"Garrus."

The Turian in question jumped slightly before turning around swiftly to find Commander Shepard leaning against the open door. His visage relaxed and he turned from her.

"Look, can our chat wait for a bit? I'm in the middle of some calibrations." Cera had to do her best to stifle a laugh at that.

"Don't pull that on me, Mr. Mopey. I know you've been all angsty since we left you high and dry here while we went planet-side." She walked to stand next to Garrus, allowing the door to shut. "I figure you need to talk about that."

He sighed and turned to her, swiping a hand over his console to set it on standby. "I wouldn't call myself 'angsty', but I wasn't thrilled to be left behind. Two of our crewmembers are dead. I could have helped them, Cera! I know I could have!" he said, pointing a finger at her.

Cera shook her head before speaking again. "I know that, too, but dropping from orbit as we did was the best option in that situation. We managed to regroup sufficiently enough and retrieve the object we went for. The casualties are credited to our esteemed Illusive Man and his sniveling ways."

Garrus stared at her for a moment questioningly then closed his eyes at the realization. "He's doing the same old crap, huh?"

She nodded solemnly and spoke once more. "He's really got to stop before it kills us all." He chuckled lightly. "But, you're obviously busy, Captain Calibrate, so I'll leave you to it. I got to settle some more minds before my own crew doubts my methods.

"Of course. Good luck with Miranda." Now it was her turn to throw him a questioning look. Garrus laughed while turning to his console, switching it back on. "You'll find out. Nice talking to you, Shepard. Thank you for seeing me." She smiled sweetly and walked out to head towards the resident hot-head.

She could figure why Miranda might be so frizzled by her actions on Korlus, seeing as she was married to Cerberus and thought the Illusive Man was the greatest thing since FTL texting, but Shepard thought the girl trusted her, especially after that mess with her sister on Illium.

Stopping in front of Miranda's office, Cera mentally prepared herself and took a deep breath before reaching to activate the door when the door suddenly opened just before Shepard's hand made contact. Miranda stood bewildered in front of Cera's hand then recovered and glared at the Spectre, who quickly backed up and looked at Miranda innocently.

"What the hell, Shepard!?"

"What ever do you mean?" Shepard said, holding her hands to her chest defensively.

"Don't give me that! You know very well what I mean! Maxton and Kirkman are dead, and the Illusive Man certainly wouldn't do anything to endanger _my_ crew!"

Cera snorted but recovered and spoke. "Ooh, yeah, sorry 'Mandy. I got distracted down there and popped 'em both in the head. They looked just like Blue Suns to me, I swear."

Miranda glared at her and threw her hands down. "Don't do this, Shepard. I swear I'll… gah!" She threw her hands up then returned to staring at Cera and thrust a finger at her. "Cut the crap and tell me why. I already read the report, so don't bother bluffing."

Cera composed herself and stood firm. "Alright, look, I didn't 'do' anything. The plan was just to drop in, regroup, grab the ship, then get out. Nothing confusing or particularly life threatening. You're Illusive Man tipped them off and they were waiting for us. The rebellion was just a cover, so don't go yelling at me, Ms. Prissy."

The Cerberus officer was left surprised by the explanation, but retorted. "It was the same as on the Collector ship. We needed something and the Illusive Man held enough trust in your ability to pull through. It was your job to make sure that no one was lost and you obviously failed at that." Miranda crossed her arms, seemingly satisfied with her defense.

Now Shepard was glaring at her. "The operation wouldn't have gone half as bad if I had been given at least a shred of intel on the situation. It's not like our enemies would have been any more aware. They were expecting us from the start, so don't blame me because I'm not Jesus fucking Christ!"

Miranda tossed her arm dismissively. "Out of the question. Now, I've yelled at you enough. I must return to my more important duties than putting you in your place. I just hope you fix this in the future."

Cera stared at her disbelievingly. "What? You can't just walk away like that! You didn't even win the argument!" Miranda merely turned around, twiddling her fingers over her shoulder.

"Bye, Shepard," she goaded as the doors slid shut. Cera continued yelling and attempted to open the door again only to find it locked. She huffed in frustration and kicked the door. When she turned around, she found the entire mess hall staring at her, at which point she smiled clumsily and slowly made her way to the elevator. She turned around just in time to see Jack in front of her and stopped before they collided. Jack's face widened then changed into a smooth smile at the sight of her friend.

"Hey, Shepard." Cera found herself melting under the sound of the voice that was in stark contrast to the last voice she had the displeasure of hearing. "Nice seeing you here."

"No kidding." Shepard let her arms hang and allowed herself to stare at Jack like she was an oasis after ten days in the desert. "I don't know why you're here, so I'll assume you came to save your dear princess!"

Jack scoffed. "As if. I only came up to give the bitch down there a little what-for." She leaned forward slightly before speaking again. "Though, you're not a bad sight either, Shepard." She gently passed a thumb over Cera's cheek before smirking and walking past the now red-tinged commander. Cera stood and took a deep breath before turning back to the passing Jack.

"That won't really be necessary. I already got her fuming. There won't be much for you to do. Sorry about taking your fun." She stuck her tongue out playfully as she finished her 'apology'. The serial killer sneered at her before grabbing her cheek.

"Then I guess you'll have to pay for that."

"Oh my, Jack. I do hope your punishment isn't too much…" Cera allowed the smaller woman to press her against the wall beside the elevator, out of sight from the rest of the crew. Jack smirked and drew herself closer to her commanding officer. Without a second thought, she brought herself an inch away from Cera's waiting lips. Hands came to rest on shoulders and waists in an instant and eyes fluttered close. Then a door was heard.

"Shepard, we need to-" Tali rounded to corner to see the scary bald lady and her beloved Shepard standing as though they were most jovial. Jack stood with a hand on her hip and the other in the air as she apparently told some sort of tall tale as Cera stood beneath her holding her stomach in a painful laugh.

"And he never saw it coming. Fucking crazy, I tell ya."

Cera laughed hard before wiping a tear. "Shit, I can't believe he fell for something like that! Could have really used those kinds of ideas two years ago!" She composed herself before turning to Tali. She sniffled then spoke, "Sorry about that. Anyway, yes, Tali?" Jack crossed her arms and looked nonchalantly at the Quarian in question.

"Um, uh, yes, well, I just wanted to, eh heh," she rubbed the back of her helmet nervously. "Nothing important, really. Just some charts and this and that."

"You're not interrupting anything. I'm here."

"I-I know. I just-"

"I get it," Jack interrupted. "I'll get out of your disinfected hair, tank-head. See ya, Shepard." Jack walked past Tali and disappeared into the elevator. The sound of sliding doors was followed by the distant rumble of the car descending, leaving Tali and Cera in the constant drone of the mess hall.

"That's not what it was…"

Cera shook her head and approached Tali. "Don't worry about it. She doesn't mean anything by it. So, now that we're here, what can the Shepmeister do for you?" Tali stared for a second then shook her head suddenly.

"Right, um, I just finished the analysis of the Collector ship, is all. We should be able to get in there and practice simulations on using it within the day. Just thought you should know, heh heh." She began fiddling with her hands in front of her. Shepard merely smirked and mentally remarked on how incredibly adorable she found the ship-enthralled Quarian girl.

"Good to know. I'll start considering possible squad mates to start on that tomorrow. Fine work as always, Tali."

Unbeknownst to the commander, Tali blushed under the violet-tinted visor and looked down. "O-of course. I mean, good! I'll finish the simulation program as soon as I can!"

"You know, you could just have EDI set that up." Tali stared at her for about thirty seconds without moving a millimeter. It took a second longer than that for Shepard to realize her blunder, at which point her cheeks darkened and she stroked her hair. "Oh, right, silly suggestion. The whole AI thing, sorry."

"It's ok, Shepard. I don't expect you to understand what their kind resembles to me." Cera pouted. "That's all I needed to say. I'll be on the engineering deck if you need me." Before Cera could say another word, Tali followed Jack's previous example and disappeared into the bowels of the ship they all called home. Shepard sighed heavily. She loved her crew but they could be so frustrating sometimes. _I guess that's the price of diversity_.

"Look, I know: go to this stupid place, get in, grab the old trash, bitch out, done. Now quit bothering me; it'll get done." With that, Shepard ended the transmission abruptly and massaged her temples. "Jesus, you'd think a day off in my cabin would classify people leaving me alone," she sighed, "but apparently it doesn't…" A contact working with Cerberus, whom she'd forgotten the name of, had asked her to retrieve an old Prothean artifact from an abandoned dig site on a desolate planet in the Traverse for some research. It wasn't that urgent of a call, so Shepard naturally dismissed it for more important missions. But the man was relentless and continued berating her at least once a week since his first transmission. Even now, on her first day offered to her as 'free' since being resurrected, he wasn't letting up.

Shepard stood up after a moment and tossed her towel to the side of the room. The man's 'requests' weren't about to force her out of her alone time. Away from undead Protheans, Geth, intergalactic gangs, and crazy people hopped up on red sand. She lunged onto her bed from across the room and landed roughly causing the sheets to spray up and sending the pillows tumbling to the floor. Upon seeing this, she sighed heavily and buried her head in the sheet below her.

"Eben my billows hate me…" she mumbled into the bed. It'd been a couple of weeks since the incident back on Korlus and the crew had grown progressively distant. She'd tried her best, but most of them were Cerberus and tended to favor the Illusive Man's claims over hers. _Maybe their claims aren't completely unfounded_, she thought. _I mean, Joker probably could have dropped us off on the surface with his skills and I wouldn't have had to bring the other two. Instead I had to use the damn drop pods 'cause I thought they were so friggin' cool. Now those two are dead and it's my fault_.

"That's a shocker. _I_ don't hate you." Cera practically flew off the bead spinning around to see the source of the voice. She was astonished to find Jack leaning against the wall of her office with her thumbs in her pockets, slouching, accompanied by her trademark smirk.

Cera caught her looking down at the commander's partially exposed body. "Ahhh!" she yelped as she flung her sheet over her. "You didn't see anything!"

Jack's smile tightened in response. "Oh, I'm sure I saw enough." Cera glared daggers at her. "Nice white panties, by the way. Kinda figured they'd be pink or something pansy like that." Shepard stared at her in malice.

"Oh, you did not just say that."

"Oh, I think I did." Shepard huffed and puffed her cheeks.

"Well, you're not about to see anymore. N-now, what the hell did you want?" Her voice lowered slightly as she finished the question.

"Hm, well, I think my reasons have changed over the last minute or so." Before Cera had a chance to retort, Jack stalked over to the bed and plopped down next to her commander. Cera mentally debated over whether to scoot further or closer to the lightly-clad killer. "But, just so you know, Miss Goody Good, I didn't get all the fuck way up her to check your ass out, though that wasn't so bad," she muttered with a suggestive smirk. "I actually came here to make sure no one bugged you today. I know you're all super important and other bullshit, but that doesn't mean you don't get to have fun, right?" Shepard nodded vigorously. "That's what I thought. So I bitched out the tech crew, shoved a technician, and sent Mordin out the airlock to get up here." Cera's jaw dropped. "I was kidding about that last part, but you should see the look on your face." Jack jumped over onto Shepard and stood over her a few seconds before thumbing over her cheeks.

Shepard just looked up into the criminal's eyes, not moving and hardly breathing. "I doubt you came up here to be more than a guard dog, eh pooch?" Jack continued to brush Cera's cheek softly.

"Jee, I don't know. That's kinda up to you, redhead." Cera smiled a bit before her eyes widened slightly and she frowned, looking away from the gaze of the room's other occupant. "Oh, now what! God, I always fuck things up!" Jack shouted as she fell back onto the empty side of the bed opposite Shepard's gaze. Cera sat up, unconsciously allowing the sheets to fall revealing her tight, white tank top.

"No, you didn't do anything, Jack." Jack looked at her solemnly. "Well, nothing bad," she added, blushing. "But, well, in case you didn't notice, there's a picture over in my office. It's-"

"Liara." Jack finished, a bitter taste in her mouth. Silence pervaded their surroundings, shutting off their breath and sending their thoughts into separate rampages. It wasn't like Cera had been keeping her previous relationship a secret, it was just that she wasn't posting it on fliers. She assumed Jack would have preferred that to this. Jack, on the other hand, was content in images of Shepard's head splattered on the wall behind them. She smiled at the concept.

A few more bitter cold and painful moments of silence passed, each woman avoiding eye contact, before Jack spoke.

"I clearly made a mistake coming up here. Call me when you need someone's head bashed in." She hoped Cera would get her for a suicide call. Her action to approach the exit was halted by a strong arm clasped to her own, fingers turning the skin on her upper arm white.

"Don't go." Jack had never heard Shepard sound so broken in all the months she'd known her. If Shepard was good at anything, it was carrying herself like a god and appearing as such to all her peers, Jack included. A voice resembling a prophet and the strength of Atlas constantly resonated from the burdened woman and never ceased to amaze those around her. It was how she got so many to believe in her cause and in everything she ever aimed to achieve. She saved the Citadel with that voice, rallying the arms of thousands for it. Now, however, she sounded as a child; weepy and broken. It sounded hollow, as though something or someone had removed her lungs. Jack turned her head around sharply to find Cera with tears welling below her eyes and tight lips. Her face was pleading, her eyes breaking.

"Don't go…" she repeated, not removing her arm from Jack's. Jack battled with herself mentally. Leave the bitch for holding onto forgotten memories or stay and get all weepy for no good reason what-so-ever?

Without further hesitation, she crawled back up the bed and wrapped her arms around Cera to pull her in close. Cera rested her head and arms on Jack's torso and closed her eyes, letting her collected tears to fall down her unpaved cheeks and onto Jack's bare skin. "Thank you…" Jack just sighed and caressed Shepard's hair slowly. She wasn't used to all this teary weepy stuff and had never planned to but, considering everything that Cera had been through- which was much more than any human should ever endure- she decided that she would lax on at least this one self-rule.

She eased herself into a more comfortable position, continuously kneading the other woman's crimson tresses. "Look, I don't know what those freaks downstairs have been bugging you with but, whatever it is, they're wrong. I don't care about whether or not those two idiots dying was your fault or about some picture of your long lost girlfriend. You've been through too much shit to let that hold you down and they need to realize you're beyond that. I have." Cera looked up, face slightly more composed but surprised, eyes hopeful. "I mean that, Cera." Without another hesitation, Cera stretched up and brought their lips together.


	7. Once an All Powerful Bitch

_This isn't her, this isn't Shepard. She's not the badass super heroine she made me believe she was and… I like it_. Their lips separated and Jack found those teary, emerald eyes staring back at her but, this time, in a far different light. Jack smiled possessively. "About damn time." Cera scrunched her face.

"I'm crying and I kiss you and _that's_ what you have to say? Jee, thanks." Jack grew surprised for a moment before her face flushed.

"No, I mean, I'm here and all that fluffy bullshit, but I just-" Shepard cut her off with a finger to her lips.

"Cool it. I'm just messing with you." Now it was Jack's turn to look perturbed as Cera grinned triumphantly. She placed a hand along Jack's jaw and caressed it softly. "In all honesty, I'm really glad you're here. Much better than the Illusive Smoker smearing my face in his problems." Jack grabbed Cera and pulled her close, her head resting on the crimson hair of her commander. Shepard closed her eyes and breathed softly as her head rested on Jack's chest, drifting in the rise and fall of her breaths.

As Shepard fell into a light sleep, Jack found herself berated by her thoughts. She had developed a wall around herself over the course of her life and the only people she'd ever let past it were dead. That wall had only gotten stronger as she grew older. She figured that it'd always be that way with her just using and killing everyone on the outside to serve and save herself, not caring for another living soul. Then this red-haired vixen just had to crack her out of cryo. Jack didn't trust herself around Shepard, believing distance was favorable. Maybe a little fuck here and there, but that wall was to stay erect. And she still had that ideal. But the grout was coming out.

"You're lucky I'm here to kill people." Jack stroked the sleeping woman's hair softly. Her heart caught when she parted the hair to see Cera's features. She'd never seen the woman asleep or without stress lining her face. Even when she came forward a little while ago, it wasn't nearly as revealing as her sleeping form; yet another side of her she didn't make public and the amount of trust required to see this was not lost on Jack. She hoped she was a harder nut to crack than Shepard but, if that were the case, then Cera was a damned mallet. _Ah piss._

Kenneth turned his head to the sound of shouts and crashes coming from the bottom deck. "The hell is she doin' down there?"

"Who knows, but just leave her and she'll stop. Just as long as she doesn't-" Gabby was cut off when another pound shuttered the lights of engineering. "Let's go." The two engineers quickly ran through the door behind them and bounded down the grated stairs to find the local biotic powerhouse destroying what was once a very nice table. It now resembled a modern art sculpture with a leg nearly piercing a pipe behind it.

"Jack, yeh crazy bitch! Quit trashin' ah baby!" Kenneth attempted reaching the biotic and was sent crashing into the far wall, knocking the wind out of him.

"Just fuck off; I'm not fucking breaking your lousy ship." Gabby pointed to a hole in a tube near Jack while helping her companion to his feet. It was expelling gas and Jack was slightly surprised that she hadn't noticed that. "Oh shit, I didn't-" Gabby glared at her and Jack kicked the floor. "Fuck! I gotta… AHHHH!" She screamed as she ran from the room, snapping one of the stairs as she leapt up to the next floor.

"Hey, we might need to watch her more closely from now on."

"Yeh think?" Gabby gave him a look and he shrugged. "Jes' sayin'. 'Er crazy was a wee bit obvious teh me." Gabby rolled her eyes helped her friend up.

"Now you've been proven right, happy? Let's go get our tools and fix this mess." Kenneth sighed as they got to work.

"Shit." Jack bit her nails roughly, piercing the skin on her thumb. The taste of iron calmed her slightly and she fell back on the bulkhead with a heavy sigh. "I hate complicated shit." Jack was sitting in a tiny crevice in the back of the hanger, the bizarre Hammerhead vehicle suspended above her. While the rest of the ship was loud, crowded, or both everywhere else, the only sounds from the hangar were creaks and groans accompanied by the complete absence of any life.

The windowed hallway overlooking the hangar was empty as well, though Grunt could be seen through his window messing with a data terminal. Zaeed's room was dark as he had been taken on a mission with Shepard. She had business on the Citadel and Jack wasn't up to deal with a bunch of haughty rich people at the moment. In fact, she was glad she hadn't gone. She might have hurt someone in her current state of mind. "Wait… what?" _I don't give a fuck if I kill a thousand Citadel preps!_

She roared as she pounded a neat hole into the pillar next to her. She stood to deal more damage but kept herself from pounding the floor mid-swing, collapsing in a heap of sobs. "Shepard, you bitch." Words meant to sound threatening came out quaking and quiet. This would have enraged her more if she could see.

"Oh, Keelah." Jack's head jerked up to see Tali observing the con's handiwork. Jack did her best to compose herself as she stood again and made the most threatening stance she could which consisted of her leaning forward with balled fists.

"The fuck you doin' here, bolt brain?" Tali was taken aback by the tears in her ally's eyes.

"Well, you weren't necessarily being quiet in here, so Gabby and Kenneth sent me here to see what I could do. But you clearly need more time. Try not to break too many things." The Quarian turned to leave but was stopped by a strong force tugging at her shoulder. She looked to Jack to see blue dissipating from around an outstretched hand. "I really don't need you wasting my time, Jack." Jack looked down solemnly and hugged her sides.

"I don't like this. And I'll waste your time if I damn well need to." Tali usually tried to ignore the insane biotic, her attitude being somewhat distracting to her personal work, but now her ear was caught by the sound of utter defeat in Jack's voice. The usual cocky persona was now replaced by that of a little girl huddled in a corner waiting for her mother. Tali chose to take that challenge.

"Fine. You have my attention." Jack felt somewhat relieved but uncomfortable at the same time. She kicked the ground once in an attempt to bolster her confidence. Violence was safe, familiar, and the one thing she could trust.

"I don't do this kind of shit, alright? I break necks, smash ships, and ruin lives. If someone smiles from something I've done, I rip it off and tear their jaw out. I don't…" Her thoughts spilled out of her mouth, forcing the little girl back in her, and her arms slinked around her waist again. She turned away from Tali's faceplate, finding it somewhat condescending. "I know who I am. I know what I do. This isn't me." Tali wasn't fully aware of Jack and Shepard's newfound relationship, but she had seen the two enough to piece together what was happening here.

"Each of our lives are a journey. There isn't a single thing that is certain. We start out believing things from our youth and change our personal thoughts as we are introduced to new things, foreign experiences. Making a plan is foolish. You can only live with uncertainty and an open mind."

"Pretty words but they don't mean a whole lot. Not when I'm so black." Jack looked at the floor for a moment, watching dust flitter through the air. Each tiny speck intrigued her, flowing in a world of freedom and without limitations. She had lived her whole life trying to be that way and now it was all falling apart.

"You need to realize that the past is gone; you can't hold onto childish beliefs forever, Jack!" Jack's face flew up and glared at the Quarian.

"Don't tell me to forget everything that's been done to me! Don't tell me to forget all the people who used me, all the assholes who said they'd help me and just ended up adding another scar to my skin! Don't you _dare_ tell me to forget who I am!" An uncomfortable silence overcame the two after Jack's last syllable screamed past her lips. She balled her hands into fists and shook her head violently. "I… go. I need… space." Jack was visibly tense and quaking. Tali wasn't about to question the woman and chose a nod of departure rather than a goodbye.

Jack watched the engineer leave the room and waited till she was out of earshot to collapse to the cold metal of the floor. She buried her head in her hands, tears leaking between her fingers. Her body shook as her cries grew more desperate, attempting to relieve every emotion from her mind. The salty liquid fell to her legs, soaking the pants in a dotted pattern. She removed her hands, revealing reddened eyes and quivering lips.

"Everything… everything's… different…" Her last word was a whisper.

The shuttle bay was cold, the creaks groaning from the walls and beams merely furthering the solitude of the one within its confines. Dust settled on the figure lying prone in the bowels of the massive room, small whimpers coming forth occasionally.

A loud clang reverberated through the space, shuttering Jack into a sitting position, tears still clinging to her cheeks. She wildly pawed at her face in a futile attempt to remove the uncertainty from it. The clanging grew closer and Jack panicked, curling in on herself with head in her knees. The clanging stopped as it grew its loudest.

"I thought I'd find you here." The voice was soft, calm, understanding, and somewhat of a miracle to the distraught woman. Her red eyes looked up to see her Shepard looking back at her, a gentle smile gracing her strong features. The sight of her miracle brought on another salvo of tears, rendering her head back between her knees. Cera rushed to the woman's side and wrapped her arms around the frail form.

"What… what took you so long?" The mumbled words were soggy with tears, inaudible to all but the closest ears. Shepard softly stroked Jack's bare back and kissed her shoulder.

"Garrus had some business with a… an old friend of his. But it's over, I'm here."

"You bitch," she replied, face still concealed. Cera smiled as she continued caressing the shivering woman. A soft pitter patter sound came from beneath Jack and Cera looked to see drops coming from between her knees. She quickly lifted up Jack's head to find tears cascading down her contorted features. "Don't look at me. I'm pitiful." She turned away from Shepard, wiping away some of the tears.

"No you're not, so stop this." She grabbed the crying woman's cheeks, turned her face, and planted a kiss on her damp lips. They held the kiss, eyes closed, for what seemed like an eternity. When Cera released, Jack looked somewhat disappointed. She leaned into Shepard with a sigh.

"You smell like a rotten verran."

"Oh thanks, that's what I want to hear after a kiss," she said with a smile. _At least she's back to her old self, ironically_.

"I'd… like to keep this a secret." Shepard looked to the girl leaning on her with bewilderment.

"That's not like you. Shouldn't you be like 'Fuck what they all think!' or something along those lines?" Jack shrugged.

"Not with this. I still need time before people start bitching at me. I don't wanna hear it. This is me and you, got it?" Shepard nodded, caressing the girl's shaved head.

"Not a soul." Satisfied with the answer, Jack took Shepard's arms and wrapped them around her.

"And I swear to god, if you tell _anyone_ that I'm into this fluffy shit, I'll kill you." Shepard laughed loudly, but Jack continued. "I mean, dead. Blood pooling, limbs flying, the combo pack of pain and suffering. Don't. Tell. Anything. Not even a journal or a diary or even a napkin. Don't even talk to yourself about it. Death. First degree murder. I'll do it." Shepard had been laughing the whole time, but finally stopped, swallowing the amusement.

"You got it. Not even a wall." Jack looked at her.

"Good." She readjusted herself in Shepard's arms. "Now tell me about what happened on the Citadel." This would be the second object to usher Cera's surprise. "Look, if we're gonna do this, I need to be interested in the bull shit you do. So just tell me about… your…" She worked the words in her mouth, making the face of someone who had just eaten a handful of salt. "Day." Shepard squealed and kissed her serial killer on the head.

"It's not even my birthday!"

"Shut up."

"You're sounding… _normal_."

"No! I am not normal! Don't even fuck with me! Just… AHHH! Just start talking." Shepard laughed once more before composing herself and settling down for a lengthy retelling of her day.

As if Garrus's somewhat coaxed decision to not kill Sidonis wasn't enough to knock Shepard off her heels, now she returned to the Normandy to find her… girlfriend? huddled in the furthest corner of the hangar bawling her eyes out. She'd seen some mind-blowing things in her time, but Jack's normality towards their newfound relationship topped even the Collector/Prothean connection. A cold, ruthless murderer had forsaken herself to the furies of romance and it was, without a doubt, the cutest thing Cera had ever witnessed.

Shepard now sat at her desk in her luxurious cabin reviewing previous mission reports and trying her best not to stare at Jack's dossier. Liara's photo was turned face down resting beside something Cera truly considered at the moment. Despite her feelings for the resident convict, she still had duties to fulfill; even duties for an old flame. A single manila folder beside the fallen frame contained documents of very crucial information pertaining to the whereabouts of the Shadow Broker. She owed Liara enough to see at least this through. Jack's accompaniment wasn't going to be an issue as she was likely eager for a reason to get her mind off herself. How she would handle Shepard's ex, however, was another issue entirely.

With a sigh, Shepard grabbed the documents and placed them beside her bed. She left her cabin and took the elevator to the command deck where a very cheery redhead filled her view as the doors parted.

"Hi, Cera." Her voice was saturated with a pastry sweetness only she could manage. A clipboard was held against her chest as she stood tall, a smile gracing her friendly face.

"Hey, Kelly." She said as she embraced the yeoman. The two walked back to Kelly's station where she placed the clipboard down. "I'm gonna call it a day, but we're gonna start making our way to Illium, um… tonight? I can never tell." Kelly giggled.

"I think that's one of the great things about space. You won't feel bad no matter what time you sleep."

"Except the fact that this is a military vessel so there's a specified schedule that-"

"You're exempt from it." Kelly replied hastily. Shepard gave her an odd look and Kelly reddened under the scrutiny.

"Well whatever. I'll be gone for probably a long time once we hit Illium so I just wanted you to know that. I'll be taking Garrus and Jack with me so could you inform them of that so they get sleep before we arrive?" Kelly nodded quickly.

"Yes, of course, right away." She turned to her station and began entering the code on her console to contact Garrus. Just as Cera was walking away, Kelly said, "I'll, um, talk to you later, then." Cera nodded back and continued making her way to Joker.

The crew around her spoke as they worked, speaking of personal issues and a few conversations of Shepard's folly a few weeks ago. Many seemed in agreement that the Illusive Man had dropped the ball once again, but others weren't so sure. Cera prayed she wouldn't have to talk to them, too. That time had long since passed.

Joker cycled his seat around as she approached a scowl on his face.

"About time you got here. EDI's been heckling me all day! She doesn't let me do anything with my ship!"

"It is against Cerberus regulation to put imagery of flames or racing stripes on the hull of the ship and replacing the viewport window with stained glass is a security risk. I'm not heckling you, Mr. Moroe, merely trying to keep the crew from being sucked into space."

"We could reinforce it easy! Just put a few layers in there, some sealant, it'll be as good as any viewport on the ship! And not to mention stylish."

"No."

"Gotta say, Joker," Shepard added. "I'm gonna have to agree with EDI on this one."

"Psh. You two are no fun." Cera smirked at his odd sense of humor. "But I doubt you came to the bridge just to say no to spray paint, so what is it you needed, commander?"

"I need you to get us to Illium. It's time I used that Cerberus intel to help out our old friend." Joker appeared excited at this and quickly rotated his seat back to the controls.

"Alright, we'll leave immediately. Can't wait to see Liara again, eh?" Shepard nodded slowly even though Joker couldn't see her do it. "It'll take a while to get there so you should probably get some rest before we arrive. But that's just my opinion, in case you'd rather be an insomniac or something."

"Trust me, I'm crashing as soon as I hit my bed. Wake me and my team before we reach orbit."

"Roger that, commander. Oh, tell Liara I said hi when you get down there."

"Will do." She said off-handedly as she left for her cabin. She had to rest more than her body at the moment in order to be prepared for tomorrow's confrontation.


	8. Left Outside on the Chain

"Can't say I particularly missed this place." At that moment, Shepard found herself agreeing with Garrus. Illium's high towers of bright metal and flashy skylines were a glossy coating of the brutal underbelly that was the law of the world. Entrepreneurs chewing on each other to reach the top for more money than their greedy minds could fathom. It was a miracle it hadn't fallen into the same pit as Omega centuries ago.

"Give me a pen and a fancy ass suit and I could ruin this shit hole in a day." Jack said, looking over the dozens of kiosks surrounded by hundreds of greedy patrons. Each one had one hand on their credit chit and the other ushering the nearest seller. All their eyes were glued to the displays hovering over each kiosk detailing purchases and stocks across the planet. Everyone was well dressed and carried themselves like they owned a star system.

As pretty as the sparkling world was, it didn't make a whole lot of sense to the commander. Guns and life-or-death situations meant a hell of a lot more to her then these numbers and slimy stockholders. "I've half a mind to get those for you, Jack, but I'm afraid our work would be significantly more difficult if you did that." Jack scoffed and pulled a cigarette from the deep pockets of her jumpsuit which Cera hurried to light. Jack inhaled, sparking the tip then eschewing smoke from her lips on the exhale. Cera pocketed her lighter and pushed the ex-con on the back gently to get her moving.

"Why are we here for the pretty little tentacle head anyway?" Shepard resisted the urge to slug her across the face but clenched her teeth.

"Well, Jack, we…" she stopped for a moment to compose herself before continuing. "Cerberus, has information on the Shadow Broker that Liara's been searching for. Why TIM's forsaking such precious info, I don't know."

"He likely has an ulterior, darker motive."

"I'm sure he does, Garrus. However, regardless of his intentions, Liara needs this and I'm not about to keep this from her." The trio's boots clanked loudly against the metal stairs reaching to T'soni's office, the sound becoming swallowed by the constant audio advertisements bellowing from the speakers above and the drone of the crowd below.

"Look, I'm all for helping your ex, but don't expect me to be all buddy buddy over this."

"Trust me, I don't." The three of them silenced as the doors parted with a ding, revealing a nearly empty room except for a stressed Asari leaning over a desk piled with notes, data logs, and other documents with many pilfered cabinets and chests behind her likely carrying the same. The girl's eyes lifted slightly, purple bags under barely open eyelids, to see the newcomers. Her face instantly lit up at the sight of her old flame and attempted to sit up too quickly, wrenching her knees into the roof of her desk. She cursed quietly before opting to remain seated. Her eyes stayed fixated on Commander Shepard.

The commander strode in, more or less, with Jack and Garrus in toe. Garrus appeared happy to see his old friend while Jack looked at her surroundings to find something to distract her for the next ten minutes, a half burned cigarette poised between her thick lips. Shepard was beginning to feel ill but wasn't about to back down, not now, not under these circumstances.

"Ce- Shepard. What," Liara tried her best to remove the piles of documents from her workspace, shoveling them into drawers to the sides of her. "What can I do for you?"

"Actually," Shepard began, leaving Jack at the door as Garrus circled around, "It would be more accurate to ask 'What can _I_ do for _you_.'" Cera answered Liara's puzzled stare by tossing down a sealed folder onto a now blank portion of Liara's desk. The Asari searched eagerly over its surface, grazing her fingers over the word CLASSIFIED and stopping at the sealant. She glanced up at Shepard who issued a nod before digging into the contents of the package, revealing them to be the most incriminating evidence she'd ever seen on her target.

"Where did you get this?" She said her voice as cold as the grave.

"The Illusive Man." Cera knew Liara's harsh tone was well founded but found it somewhat rude nonetheless. "I don't know where he got it, but I assure you it's accurate."

"I've no doubt of that but, listen. We can't stay here with this. His agents are everywhere." Jack subconsciously stuck her head outside the door after hearing the Asari's comment and Garrus glared at the contragravity speeders racing through the sky outside the window. "Meet me at my place." She quickly stood, taking only the newly acquired folder, and strode to Shepard to press a chip into her open palm. "Here's the location. I need a moment before you get there. Take no more than a half-hour."

"We'll be there in ten minutes." Liara nodded her approval.

"Make sure you aren't followed." The Normandy crew swiftly departed from the room except for Shepard who was stopped. "And Shepard." The woman turned to her ex-girlfriend who quickly graced her lips with her blue pair. She stared, breath caught in her throat. "Be careful." She held her hand for a moment before leaving Cera alone in the circular office.

As if that underhanded kiss wasn't enough to cloud her mind, Liara now had to move quickly to get the information she needed before the trail grew cold. Her mind raged with only the negative outcomes of all the different situations plaguing her life. The two most important objects just became intertwined.

Her speeder slowed as it reached its destination and the blue vixen bounded from the vehicle before it even landed at the dock. She ran to the door and swiped her omni-tool over a panel beside the door and waited impatiently for them to separate. Entering her home, Liara ran to a console on a far wall and activated it before swiftly punching in the contact information to an informant. After ten seconds, the image of a young Salarian shimmered into view on her holo-display. His skin was pale and he wore a green uniform, but his appearance was otherwise lacking anything of note. He seemed pleased that Liara was contacting him.

"Sekat, I need your help. More than ever."

"Naturally. Just give me details and credits and we'll be good." Straight to business, as usual.

"I have new intel on the Shadow Broker." The Salarian's eyes lit up at the name of the infamous information broker. "These files are fairly general, but I know how good you are and trust you can get me results fast." She held a small chip she had transcribed the documents onto and uploaded the data and a stockpile of credits as he replied.

"It will only be but a moment." He stopped and his image bent over, likely to retrieve the incoming data with payment. "Wait right there and I'll preview it." His image disappeared but Liara kept the link open. She looked around her anxiously, concerned about the time she was taking here in her apartment. Someone could have followed her or may even be watching her here. As a failsafe for Shepard, she attached a backup disk to the call and began recording as Sekat returned.

"What have you got for me, Sekat?" she asked impatiently.

"It was tricky, but you paid for the best. I can narrow it down to a cluster, maybe even a system." Liara became elated at the news. The Shadow Broker was nearly in her grasp! She composed herself as he finished, attempting not to sound so flustered.

"How soon can you have it?" she inquired more calmly than the last statement she had spoken.

"Shouldn't take long. Come to my office. Baria Frontiers, in the Dracon Trade Center." His visage became wary. "Gotta say, though, T'soni; you're making me nervous. How big is the trouble that could come out of this?" She smiled inwardly at his ignorance on the situation.

"Relax, Sekat." His knowledge on the situation could serve her well, so she chose not to explain the danger involved. "I'll see you in a few hours." He nodded quickly then his image dissipated as the console reverted into the wall of Liara's home. _Good. Finally some progress. I don't know if I'll ever be able to repay Cera for this._ Her mental machinations were cut short as the wide glass wall of her apartment buckled under a projectile piercing its surface, the bullet narrowly missing the biotic. Liara quickly raised a barrier which swallowed the following rounds. The air quieted and Liara took the opportunity to take the recording and hide it beneath a Prothean artifact she had acquired from a dig long ago. The display doubled as a safe, the entry codes being kept on the second floor. She trusted Shepard to be wise enough to locate them and, consequently, Liara.

Another bullet punctured the glass overlooking her living space and she dashed outside, demolishing the closed door blocking the exit. She jumped into her transport, started it, then rose to circle her apartment complex and merged with traffic out of site from the shooter. She waited a moment before she turned her X3M back around to her apartment. She figured the attacker may try searching for clues as to where she went, and it seemed she was right. Flowing through the sky, she saw another shuttle land beside her home. Before she sped back into traffic, she noticed a tall asari in custom armor, possibly a spectre, leave the transport and enter Liara's apartment. _Damned assassin wants to try finding me. Good luck, bitch._

Finding there was nothing she could do until she left the area, Liara re-entered traffic and activated cruise controls, allowing herself a pause to relax.

There was the occasional time where she ran into a Shadow Broker operative and had to rough them up or toss a couple goons, but it had been a while since she'd exercised her biotics so thoroughly. The activity and tensions caused over the past fifteen minutes had done a toll on her, and, surprisingly, not in the bad sense. She looked at herself in her rear-view mirror and found a beautiful, young asari ready for adventure gazing back at her. No longer was the stressed information broker seeking revenge present in her visage. It was replaced by the determined face and mind of a scientist seeking answers. But her formal attire would not do for this situation. Fortunately, she kept spare garments for such an occasion in her speeder for moments such as these. Her better hard-suit was in her apartment, but these would clearly have to do.

With auto-pilot engaged and following traffic, she dove into her back seat to retrieve a chest from beneath the seat. Prying it open revealed a blue and white outfit, combat-friendly and mildly resembled her old uniform from her archeologist days. It reminded her of the innocence of the past while solidifying her new resolve on things to come. The base was white and the blue lined the exterior in elegant patterns. Certain areas were convex rather than flat for more air flow on the battlefield but also designed to fall beautifully in times of silence.

Without further reverie, Liara disrobed to nothing, realizing this might be the only thing she'd be wearing for days, and went about placing every piece of the suit on. The first layer, a thin but heavy fabric, slid over her skin gently, filling every noticeable crevice of her body for the best protection. Over the weave went ablative ceramic plates designed to repel against slugs that broke through her kinetic and biotic barriers. They, too, were white and blue with designs matching the coat soon to follow. She pressed the plates into their matching sections of weave until she heard and a click resonated signaling a successful attachment. The breast plate clasped neatly to her chest but felt a bit tighter than she remembered. She had only worn it once one and a half years ago so time was likely the culprit.

The final piece was the gorgeous lab coat she had designed personally. It really held no defensive properties, but it attached to the plates and had useful pockets for anything she might need to carry. She wrapped the light cloth around her and clipped each of the hooks to their respective catches. After that, she strapped on her protective boots and gauntlets that completed the ensemble. Aesthetically, anyway. The final parts were her two side arms she carried always which she holstered to either side of her hips. Liara sat up as best she could in the narrow skycar and looked down at herself. The flashing lights of the world rushing outside reflected hypnotically off her bleach-white chest plate, the metallic fire arms accenting the colors dancing across her breasts. The edges of her coat swayed softly to the motion of the speeder, drifting slowly every time the vehicle turned. The appearance of her form gave Liara an inner confidence she hadn't felt since she went with Feron to rescue Shepard from the clutches of the Collectors. Her cheeks darkened at the familiarity with this feeling, though nearly forgotten in the tresses of documents and research.

Dressed to kill and suited for the fight of the year, she returned to the driver's seat and deactivated auto-pilot to finish the trip to Dracon.

The complex rose from the towers in the distance held within the borders of her tinted viewport. The structure itself was very artistic in its own right, the tiers almost separate oval entities connected by a common pattern. It quickly filled her vision with its high windows and speeders racing to and from the complex.

She landed her shuttle casually on a mostly vacant landing strip near the rear of the complex, preferring to remain incognito if at all possible. Once settled, the X3M speeder door peeled open for Liara to step from the vehicle and allowed it to close and lock behind her. She patted herself down and stretched having been unable to do so during the trip. After ensuring the stability of her weapons, Liara proceeded to the side entrance where she swept her omni-tool across a panel on the wall for a quick hack. The doors parted and she stepped through. Being concealed by the surrounding walls, she broke into a brisk jog, making a break for a lift. The nearest left had a line and was packed. She didn't have time to deal with security clearance or crowds so she turned to a door at her left. It split open as she approached, revealing enough stairs to make her limp just looking at them. Sighing, she dragged herself to the base, took a deep breath, and ran up the stairwell as quickly as physically possible.

The third floor door was the answer to her prayers, the shining light at the end of a tunnel. Sekat's office rested on this floor, it being the center of the Trade Center. She permitted herself a smile, feeling she was getting closer to the end of a very long journey. She pressed her hand to the door and watched as it parted. It made it halfway when it froze. She eyed it quizzically until her ears caught a low rumbling. Then a sizzle. Then she dove. The door exploded outward, hot fire roaring in its wake. The debris from the explosion ricocheted down the stairs as smoke and screams filled the air. Liara choked on the smoke, her face blackening.

_I should have known he would catch this. I need to hurry before they reach Sekat!_ Her will to see it through encouraged her to press through into the room beyond the wall. The sight through the smoke was total destruction. One of the detonation devices must have been in the room, the evidence being a deep crater on the far end. Walls were torn through, flora disintegrated, all the workers now smoldering corpses, and the sky window pierced into the view of the sky. The sight of the dead, the innocent dead, brought tears to the young Asari's eyes. They didn't deserve such a horrid death. Their deaths were _her_ fault. No. They were on _his_ hands. He was pulling the strings. He was the reason she had to come to such lengths. And he had to be stopped. The dead would be honored by being avenged.

Her dash through the room was cut short as bullets sprayed the ground at her feet. Her gaze shot upward to the sight of the Shadow Broker's goons descending on the scene, heavily armed and dropping fast. Cables followed them to allow their allies to proceed as well. Liara didn't have time for a firefight in these circumstances. Her arm shined a mighty sapphire and a charred piece of metal imitated the same glow. It jumped into Liara's grasp and, with the same light, she forced it up into the troop transport directly above her. It penetrated the mass effect generator in the base causing a massive explosion that took out all the troops that were air born. The survivors either fell to their deaths or landed with serious injuries, no longer a threat to the powerful biotic.

Liara wasted no time on the stragglers. She exited in a hurry, following the fiery hallways to her informant's office. Each room, every hall, carried the stench of death and fire. Not a pleasant combination though not alien to Liara. She came across no further resistance but remained cautious. She wasn't sure how integrated into the structure the enemy had become, but she wasn't taking any chances. Further down a smog-filled hallway, she heard the distinct sound of two gunshots from the same weapon. She drew her pistol and broke into a sprint. Whatever the target, it was sure to be the place of interest. More rooms, more hallways, and then she heard her. Shepard. But, there was another voice. It was foreign but, whoever is was, they had a cocky sort of arrogance in their tone.

She approached quietly, not wanting to be heard until she desired so. The mysterious woman's next statement revealed her identity.

"Speaking of which, did you find your friend's body?" It was her assailant, without a doubt. The Asari's smug visage appeared before Liara as she entered the room, gun raised.

"You mean this body?" she said incredulously, fire reflecting off her perturbed features.

"Liara, this is Vasir. She's a spectre." Shepard said, stepping in between the two Asari.

"This is the woman who tried to kill me." At that, Shepard's eyes widened and she stepped away from Vasir. Her ignorance towards the assassin astonished Liara, but there was nothing more she could do about that. Vasir chuckled lightly.

"You've had a rough day, so I'll let that slide. Why don't you put that gun down?" Vasir sneered, backing towards the window overlooking the second floor behind her. Liara pressured her, pistol pointed at her head.

"I saw you! I doubled back after I left; I watched you break into my apartment!" Finally, Shepard managed to connect the dots.

"You didn't know where Liara went because she hid the message." Her and her two companions drew their weapons as realization washed over them. "You needed me to find it for you." Vasir shrugged.

"Thanks for the help," Vasir quipped. Liara continued explaining the situation to further the spectre's guilt.

"Once she had my location, she signaled the Shadow Broker's forces. They bombed the building to take me out. She found Sekat, took his data, and killed him." That much seemed obvious to her, given the circumstances. "I'm guessing she's still got the disk on her."

"Good guess. Not that you'll ever see what's on it…" She stated, lifting one hand to show the disk and clasping the other behind her back. "You pureblood bitch!" She yelled as she shimmered blue and the screen behind her cracked. She brought her arm around front in a swing. The window behind her shattered inward, glass shards cascading towards Shepard's crew, but Liara managed to conjure a barrier in time to dust the shards before they hit her allies. In the flurry, Vasir made a run for the end of the veranda. Shepard pursued and tackled her through the remaining window. They tumbled through the air, punching and smacking each other, suspended by Vasir's biotics. They drifted out of sight, but Liara heard a roar and looked over to find Vasir about to unleash the finishing blow to the incapacitated Shepard. Liara leapt from the balcony, biotics flaring, and landed in between the two spectres.

Liara felt awful leaving her former-lover on the ground but she didn't have time to wait for so, with a scowl, she followed Vasir as she ran for the exit on the far end of the room. Two guards climbed the stairs from the lower level and Liara sent them crashing to the floor in heaps. She descended the stairs before they hit the ground. Abandoning her allies seemed low, but she needed to hurry. Vasir had killed Sekat, used Shepard, and now had the information on the Shadow Broker's location. She needed to be stopped before it was too late.

The rogue spectre brought walls and ceilings down on her pursuer which Liara deftly sent crumbling off her barrier. More troops descended on her and she dove beneath, between, and around them not even bothering to grant them death. Vasir sought to lengthen the distance between them, but Liara wouldn't let up nor would she slow down. They broke into the outside, another explosion flaming through the front window. Glass nicked at Liara's blackened face as she chased Vasir to the parking strip. The two Asari were forced into a stalemate as they both took cover behind opposite skycars and traded shots. Shepard's party appeared from the building at the end of the lot, skirting from cover to cover. The return of Shepard's party apparently frightened Vasir because, when Liara turned back around, the spectre was making a break for the edge and jumped, landing on her own skycar she likely summoned and soared into the sky, far out of reach from the small biotic. Swearing out loud, she kicked the ground in frustration, her quarry disappearing into the city. Her attention swayed when Shepard's crew approached her and Cera swung her around by the shoulder.

"Liara! We need to go after her!"

"I know!" thinking fast, she picked the closest car, broke it open with her biotics, and rushed her allies into it. Even before the door sealed, they had cracked the controls and risen into the air, catching Vasir in their monitor swiftly.

"I'll track her; you drive," she ordered Shepard. It felt almost empowering to be giving an order to her former leader.

"I'm on it." Cera quickly accessed the haptic interface and sped up to catch the fleeing agent. Buildings and skycars rushed by them in a furious display, dozens of vehicles nearly grazing their own. "I can't say I really saw this coming when I brought you the intel." Liara was baffled by Shepard's attempt at small talk.

"I have to agree with you, but please stay on track." A skycar whizzed over their heads, bumping harshly on the canopy. "Pay attention!" She couldn't believe Shepard was being so casual!

"Look, I'm doing my best; get off my back!" Shepard retorted while veering to the left to follow Vasir around a corner.

"Would you both just get over it? We need to work together to catch her!" Another surprise, it seemed, was that Garrus was now the voice of reason when Liara was usually the one speaking plainly. She supposed that her desire for vengeance had clouded her judgment, so she breathed softly for a moment to compose herself.

"Yeah, you're right, Garrus. I'm- I'm sorry. Shepard, keep your eyes on her and I'll watch our sides." Cera nodded, gaze still glued to their prey.

Another turn and they watched Vasir glide into a tunnel, which Liara felt necessary to point out. "She's going into the tunnel!"

"No shit, fish lips." The tattooed girl apparently found it necessary to throw insults around at this time. She clearly hadn't been brought up to speed on the severity of this issue.

Their X3M followed suit and flew into the tunnel, veering in between traffic dangerously. Vasir ahead of them knocked a truck onto its side which now fell towards them at an alarming speed.

"Truck!" The driver was apparently trying their best to correct their trajectory, but it wasn't working.

"I know!" The truck now almost spanned the entire tunnel and was mere meters from smashing in their viewport.

"TRUCK!" Liara panicked but Cera managed to steer to the side and slightly grazed the wrecked truck, tearing apart the paint job on the aircar. She permitted herself a moment of relief but remained focused. They emerged from the tunnel, still in hot pursuit with their quarry in their sights.

"Hey look, it's me!" the bald woman shouted excitedly. And so it was. Shepard couldn't look, but Liara and Garrus turned their heads and above them was a holographic billboard with mug shots of the very woman seated behind her. She wasn't aware they were working with criminals, but Cerberus had been the ones to resurrect Shepard so she wasn't entirely bewildered. Yet she still thought Cera had more self-respect than to recruit a convict into her ranks. "They got my good side, too. I tried to be as threatening as I could. Managed to make the officer overseeing it piss himself. I think he left the next day. Pussy." Liara doubted she would ever grow fond of the fiery prisoner and hoped she would never have to.

"Yeah," Cera replied, sounding almost jovial. "Doubt he'd wanna stick around _you_." The convict punched her in the arm which caused Shepard to laugh a bit as she made a hard turn around another corner. Liara had clearly missed a lot of Shepard's life and it was evident in how often her actions surprised the former archeologist.

"Shepard, she's dropping proximity charges." Vasir, now out of traffic and only buildings surrounding them, was releasing air born mines from the back of her vehicle in a futile attempt to slow the team.

"I see that. Not a problem." She swerved in between the mines, speeding as she passed each one to make good time. Her skill at everything she did still astounded Liara and even took her breath away. But, she'd changed. The skill was clearly still there just as it was two years ago, but there was something else…

"Oh shit!" Shepard's shouting ripped Liara from her thoughts. A mine had been too close to a corner and had managed to get beneath them. They flew close enough for it to detonate behind them, but, instead of destroying them, it boosted them and Cera took the opportunity to thrust up to Vasir. Liara was now clutching to the sides, amazed that Shepard could stay this steady with everything going on.

"How can you stay so calm?"

"Lots of practice." The small boost gave them the advantage and they managed to get close enough to Vasir to make physical contact. Vasir rammed into the party, rocking them to the side, then they swayed back and hit her, mimicking the previous affect.

They continued slamming into each other, flying in the opposite direction of traffic, while approaching quickly on a large complex Liara recognized to be the establishment known as Azure. Shepard made one final push and swung back, held a second, then smashed their speeder hard into Vasir's, tossing her into oncoming traffic. A speeder collided with her and she fell in a plume of fire to the luxury resort below. Liara didn't think it killed the violent assassin, but it bought them the window they needed to catch her.

"Land down there, now." Shepard quickly landed on an opening a short distance from Vasir's crashed vehicle. The party filed out as the skycar settled smoothly and they ran into the rooms nearby. Weapons drawn, they searched each room finding them to be vacant aside from security mechs and possessions of the residents. Liara prayed they weren't here when Vasir crashed lest they become more unneeded casualties in her war.

Further into the rooms, their floors held patches of blood, likely from their Vasir. The knowledge that Vasir was wounded overjoyed Liara, and that sickened her.

"This is the kind of work we should've been doing in C-Sec." Garrus still seemed to be tied to his perverted sense of justice but, in this instance, Liara found herself agreeing with the Turian.

"It's necessary right now. Vasir must be stopped before she can destroy anything else and escape with the data. It could save the lives of millions if we catch her here and now." They continued traveling through the empty apartments and running into zero resistance.

"I don't usually like to do things like this, but you're both right. We need to bring her down. And, Liara, I'm sorry for not seeing who she was sooner." Liara shook her head.

"What's done is done. She won your allegiance through her position as a spectre. You had no way of knowing. She's clearly skilled. I can't imagine this upcoming confrontation is going to be simple."

"Tough or not, we're gonna crush her and that'll be it. No one's stronger than me." Liara glared at the convict whom she still didn't know the name of. The care to learn it was dwindling.

"I'm stronger than you, Jack." Cera replied in a haughty tone, a grin plastered on her face. What kind of name was Jack for a girl? But, then again, she wasn't very lady-like. The name actually fit pretty well.

"Oh shut up. You're still a pussy." The familiarity between the two astonished Liara. They walked close and they were constantly looking at each other. They were crude, but Liara didn't sense any hostility in their words. And it frightened her. Had she lost her love to more than death?

"Quiet. There she is." Garrus silenced them and they crouched behind a wall of the final room. Outside was a diner, likely for the wealthy patrons of the establishment, and Vasir was walking through it as casually as she could with a limp, blood tracking beneath her boots. As Shepard's team ran for her, Vasir took out her gun and shot into the sky, sending the patrons of the diner fleeing the area screaming. Vasir grabbed the waitress, sending her drinks shattering into the ground. She turned and held a gun to Shepard's crew and a shimmering blue hand to her captive's throat. Liara ran ahead of her allies and stopped when the spectre caught her gaze.

'"It didn't have to go this far, Dr. T'soni." Now she seemed to be going for the guilt trip, trapped like a hound. "You should have left well enough alone, then no one would have had to suffer in your petty search for revenge." Liara refused to give into her words.

"No! This blood is on your hands and the hands of the Shadow Broker! I'm merely trying to stop you before you can kill anymore!" Her gun remained trained on her adversary, her hostage wide-eyed and whimpering.

"Listen, we're gonna get you out of this. I won't let her hurt you." Shepard stood next to Liara and seemed to find it a better strategy to calm the hostage rather than get at the enemy. Liara loved her, but she could be foolish sometimes. Vasir ignored Shepard and returned her focus to the other Asari.

"There's no blood on me. I'm doing what's right for the galaxy. Do you have any idea how many lives I've saved with the information from the Shadow Broker? What's a few hundred dead civilians if it means keeping his secret safe?" Her foolishness far outdid Shepard's, however, and Liara was much more interested in stopping hers.

"Sacrificing innocents for any purpose is never right under any circumstance." Shepard now directed her attention to the spectre, rage boiling in her voice.

"You're right about one thing: it doesn't have to end this way. Let the girl go and we can end this without any more bodies." Garrus had changed more than Liara first thought. Two years ago, he would have shot right through the hostage if it meant stopping the crook. But now he held his weapon down, dropping agitation for negotiation. Maybe Shepard hadn't changed completely. She still had influence in her companions and made people better than they once were which made Liara afraid of how Jack may have been like before meeting the commander.

"I'm not giving into you, Turian." She trained her gun onto the hostage.

"No, I have a son..." the human waitress whimpered.

"I'd hate to kill you. I've heard losing a parent is horrific. Scars the child for life."

"I'm going to end you," Liara stated. Vasir didn't deserve the respect of having her name spoken.

"I'm right behind you, Liara." Shepard backed up her ex with her rifle raised.

"Hey, how about this, you pussies." Liara was astonished to see Jack approach Vasir, weapons holstered. She turned to the oncoming human and retrained her gun to her. Jack stopped but assumed a feral pose. "Unlike them, I really don't give a shit about that pathetic girl. I'll tear through her to get to you. You did… things and," she said the last bit in a softer tone, turning her head down. She stopped and forced her face back to Vasir. "You know what? I don't have to fucking explain myself to you! I'll rip that bitch apart, and you along with her!" She roared and swung her arm forward to the dismay of her companions and Vasir shoved her hostage to the side before disappearing in a brilliant stream of white. Jack's attack, a biotic shockwave by the look of it, narrowly missed the human on the ground and tore into the tables scattered across the veranda.

"Run, go!" Shepard yelled. The human took note and ran into the buildings behind them. Vasir had reappeared at the far end of the area, her barrier flaring.

"You were foolish to attack me, you worthless human." Shepard and Garrus loaded their snipers as they searched for cover while Jack closed in on the target. Liara recognized Vasir's surge and instead chose to run to the center of the field in preparation of her next surge. "Now witness what a real spectre can do!" A pulse of energy heaved from Vasir, lighting the area in a spark of light.

Vasir began firing on her attackers with her Vindicator rifle, damaging their shields but not quite piercing them. The team took turns taking shots at the Asari, slowly whittling down her barrier. She pulsed energy every time she was about to surge across the battle field, forcing the team to quickly change positions while Jack dashed back and forth trying to catch the vanishing Vasir who was doing her best to avoid the convict.

"Destroying the Shadow Broker will destroy everything he's created. Billions will die. Then whose hands will be red?" Vasir shouted, bolting to the side of Liara. She lifted her fist and brought it down at an alarming speed. Liara barely forced herself off the wall as the floor was replaced by a crater in an instant. Debris pelted her forehead and she ran for a table. Quickly, she turned it to its side and hid behind it. It wasn't durable, but it was something. She heard an ear-shattering ripple through the air followed by the sound of an exploding barrier. She looked over to see Shepard reloading her large, white rifle while Vasir turned to her in a rage.

She didn't notice Jack coming up on her flank and she rammed Vasir with a double-fisted slam. The biotic force destroyed the spectre's armor and sent her to the ground. Jack growled as she charged a final blow but was cut short as Vasir changed targets. She charged her own shockwave and threw it at Shepard. The commander was too close to get out in time and Jack saw that. She dove at the shockwave and caught it full on, only a whisper of it making contact with Cera. She sat stunned, staring at the motionless body of the convict. Liara took the opportunity to charge at Vasir and unload an entire clip of her pistol into the Asari's skull. Blood spattered the elegant flooring and Tela Vasir's body went limp. Liara knelt beside the corpse to retrieve her ultimate goal. She rifled through the mottled corpse until she found the simple, blinking disc that held priceless information. The Shadow Broker. At last; she could practically taste the fear he was sure too feel as she would face him. Soon, he would fall.

Apparently, she'd missed something, because she looked up to see Shepard holding the prone form of Jack, Cera's face concealed behind her crimson hair. Liara ran to her only to have the red-haired woman shoot her back with teary eyes. Liara had never seen the woman so miserable. Her lips were thick and her eyes as red as the tresses framing her distraught features. Liara had never been one to shy from Shepard's emotions, but she realized that she needed to stay out of this one. The pain Jack's fall caused Shepard hurt Liara more than she had thought it would.

Garrus walked up to the young Asari and pulled her gently from the scene, the two not being able to do anything for their commander.

"You've been away for a while, Liara." Her eyes never left Shepard. She watched as her love-former lover-ran a hand carefully over Jack.

"Clearly. I… I suppose I should have made contact sooner."

"Don't sweat it. You had to go after the Shadow Broker. He needs to go down. It just so happens that now is when our interests meet." Liara was glad that Garrus was doing his best to help her understand, but her heart still quaked as she looked over Cera. She turned her head, instead choosing to stare at the small disc in her hand.

"Let's… let's go transmit the data. I'm sure Joker will be pleased to hear me." Garrus's mandibles lifted, a lighter mood gracing him.

"I'm sure he will." The two aliens walked into a room allowing their allies outside some privacy. The Normandy would need to be called down to assist the injured prisoner. Maybe former prisoner. Liara hadn't really thought about the woman since she saw the billboard in the city. Not that it truly mattered now.

"Um," Liara looked down at her omni-tool glowing on her arm feeling slightly embarrassed. "I've forgotten the connection codes for the Normandy." It had been two years and far too much had happened for her to keep something that she thought she'd never use again.

"Oh, right." Garrus leaned over Liara and punched in the codes on her omni-tool. Why he was able to do that, she didn't know. She figured it was a tech thing. He pressed the call key and, a moment later, the familiar male voice rang through her ears.

"Helmsman Moreau responding." She smiled. He sounded as though he hadn't aged a day.

"This is Dr. T'soni, Joker."

"Liara? God, am I glad to hear you! Kinda figured the commander would've kept you all to herself." It hadn't been his intention, but the remark forced a frown onto Liara's face.

"Yeah. That's something she'd do…" Her words were hollow. She attached the disk in her hand to the connection and watched as the data was fed through the transmission.

"What's this you're sending?"

"Coordinates on the base of the Shadow Broker."

"This soon? I didn't think you'd actually be able to figure that out, no offense."

"None taken. It's been difficult." A good conversation was a good distraction.

"I'll clip these into the nav charts here…" his voice drifted off but soon returned. "Done. Well, seems it should only take a few hours to get there. But it's right above a gas planet. Can't say that's a good LZ, but we'll send the shuttle down and roll out the details once you come on board. I have your location marked. Shuttle should be arriving in a few minutes."

"Thank you so much, Joker." Liara could hear the smile in his voice.

"Anything for an old friend, Liara." The connection cut and she was left alone with Garrus. He had gone to the doorway and was watching Shepard when Liara joined him. The commander seemed to have woken the convict and the two were now speaking. Liara's face clenched when Shepard pressed a hand to the other woman's cheek. Once again, she had to force herself to look away. There was no doubt about it.

Shepard had moved on.


	9. Two Sides of the Same Coin

Electronic particles shimmered in the air as the Yahg roared a final, fierce cry, his body torn asunder from the pulse of electricity streaming from the ceiling to the floor. The shocks dispersed, revealing nothing but quiet in the room of the Shadow Broker. Liara dropped her gun, her shoulders becoming limp. Shepard holstered her own weapon and held the Asari. The air was still, only the distant howling of the outside permeating from the far walls. Liara slumped into Shepard and let out a sigh.

"It's… it's over, huh?" Shepard nodded. "I just… wow. All this time, all that effort, and it's done for good. In an instant."

"Now you know what I have to put up with when the Reapers come." Liara giggled.

"Yeah, this doesn't really compare with that, does it?" Her companion didn't reply. She closed her eyes, now realizing the comfort she found in her former-lover's arms. Even only seconds after the demise of her nemesis, she found herself seeking solace in Shepard's embrace. Liara wanted her life back now that the Shadow Broker had been removed. Taking that life started here.

The calming fingers placed delicately across her arms brought back distant but very pleasant memories of the past. Shepard must have caught on to Liara's thoughts because she let go quickly and backed away. Liara turned around to see Shepard blushing slightly. _Maybe I do have a chance, _Liara thought optimistically.

The two were forced from their silent reverie as the screens on the far side of the room began flashing red. The console was the Shadow Broker's connection to all his assets and agents, each one reporting to that very station. The holo-grid of vid panels began emanating voices of concern. The Broker's agents knew something had happened. Liara, thinking quickly, dashed to the station and looked over the different controls and commands that could be issued. More voices echoed from the console, further stressing the Asari. Her brow furrowed, looking over the various commands, until she found a microphone protruding from the base of the panels. Liara accessed the microphone digitally and discovered that the Shadow Broker used this to speak to his agents but concealing his true identity at the same time with a voice modulator. She could use that.

Thinking of something convincing, Liara leaned forward, the concerned voices at its peak, and spoke into the receptor. "This is the Shadow Broker. We experienced a minor power fluctuation but the problem has been solved. Return to your duties and continue to report back to me. Shadow Broker out." As she finished her synthesized sentence, all the panels turned back to their usual blue and the voices acknowledged the address from their superior before silencing.

Liara turned around to find that Shepard had taken a position at the base of a shattered pillar and was favoring her forehead. Liara was about to approach her fettered friend when a Drell burst from the door, gun poised.

"Liara?" The Drell called, letting his arm down. Liara smiled weakly. He stared, jaw dropped.

"Might as well take these resources while they're ours." She said, gesturing to the countless holo-displays behind her.

"But that-that's _being_ the Shadow Broker. The _Shadow Broker_. Are you up for that?" Liara's face darkened.

"I don't know, but what else can we do? We can't just tell them all he's dead and destroy the network that's been decades in the making. I have a relatively high understanding of the Broker's methods. Not to mention his resources would be invaluable against the Reapers." Her last comment shifted her attention from the recently freed Drell back to the troubled military commander. Her fish-faced ally didn't notice the change.

"Well, um, I guess that works then. Good pay-back for that bastard, I suppose." Liara nodded, interest in him dwindling. It wasn't like she was unhappy to see her friend free for the first time in two years, but her mind had become increasingly distracted. Feron could wait for an hour, but Shepard needed to be dealt with now. He stopped a moment to follow her gaze, his eyes meeting the form of Shepard leaning against the base of a pillar. He looked between the two, mind making slight connections. His eyes widened when he opened his mouth again. "Ah, yes, good resources and all that. I'll just, you know, go in the back over there to check the power, you know how it is," he garbled meekly. Liara turned to him quickly.

"Feron, I'm glad you're free, truly. I'll… we'll talk more extensively later, I promise. Not like there's much else to do here, anyway." He smiled and nodded before walking across the room to the opposite door, sharing a parting glance with Liara as the doors sealed behind him.

The Yahg was dead, Feron freed, vengeance exacted, and all her tormentor's followers none the wiser, but there was still one matter left to attend to. With other distractions removed, she realized it was the most important on a personal level. While the issue may not save the galaxy from Reapers, it certainly felt like it would have such an impact. Her boots clanged loudly on the metal floor, the sound reflecting off the bare walls of the room, as she approached her sullen ally. She crouched and put her arm on Shepard's shoulder. If she was going to have a shot at this, it was going to be now.

"Shepard, I…" She started but stopped when Cera turned her head to the Asari. The commander's face was pale, her brow drawn and eyes containing a hint of what Liara gleaned to be hopelessness. "Shepard," she repeated as she wrapped her arms around Cera. The red-head didn't move.

"Liara, please, I'd like to leave." Liara looked at her bewildered. Had the recent past truly changed her beloved so much? "I'm happy that we finally sorted all this out." A barely visible grin crept into her lips. "You're assistance against the Reapers will be of more help than I can even say. But other things are on my mind. I'll come by later once I feel-" She was silenced when Liara captured her lips in her blue pair. Shepard resisted, attempting to close her mouth, but Liara pressed holding Shepard to the pillar. Shepard was about to push Liara off until the Asari's tongue did indescribable things in her mouth. It had been two years, a mere few months in Shepard's memory, but she hadn't forgotten the blue vixen's ability to please. She wrestled with her thoughts, not sure which option would have a more disastrous outcome. Liara continued pressing when Shepard closed her eyes and sunk into the kiss.

Cera stretched her arms across Liara's back, the familiarity of the taught muscles bringing floods of memories from before Ilos. She tilted her head, sinking further into the kiss. This wasn't what Shepard needed, it's what she wanted. Jack nestled in the back of her mind but was forgotten over the grabs from Liara and the intoxicating scent of her skin.

The two pulled relentlessly at each other's clothes, hands caressing and tugging everywhere they could reach, as Shepard whipped Liara around and pushed her into the pillar. Their kiss deepened and, with it, Shepard's mind grew ever distant. The face of a woman, head shaved, peered in her mind. She cried, eyes wrought with tears, as her face grew red. Shepard pushed it back again, pulling away Liara's coat and casting it to the ground. Liara then began tearing off the various pieces of Shepard's armor and throwing them aside. Shepard felt warm hands on her neck and the heated lips left hers. She opened her eyes and saw the woman with the shaved head staring back. She blinked quickly and the visage of Liara appeared grinning. Shepard giggled a bit, surprised at her own thoughts.

"You're so beautiful, Shepard." Liara said in a milky smooth tone as she swept aside the tattered hair covering Cera's eyes. "And, right now, you're all mine." Liara grinned widely again and replaced her mouth over Shepard's. Her tongue was sweet and acted as a drug in Shepard's system. It drove her insane and made her crave more. Without a second thought, she yanked apart her partner's armor. Liara followed the example and continued removing Shepard's until the two resorted to tearing at each other's mesh suits.

Liara viciously grabbed the clasp on the side of Shepard's suit and slinked it down until she could slide the garment from Shepard's body, their lips still pressed in a heated kiss. Shepard felt the bare skin of her chest compress under Liara's tender touch as she removed the last of the offending cloth, attached boots clanking loudly as the whole was thrown to the ground. Determined to get the better of her, she pushed the Asari back and rent her naked in a matter of seconds. Liara's breath grew haggard as the two heated up, their bodies pressing against each other. Shepard passed a few kisses then began the slow travel down Liara's abdomen, honey-sweet kisses saturating the blue skin in trails as she descended. Liara tossed her head back, gripping her lover's hair as she started tending to the generous mounds on her chest.

More memories seeded from her mind as she coaxed the familiar flesh, the contours exactly how she remembered them. Her fingers pressed against the skin carried thoughts of what it would feel like to touch a particular tattooed woman. Startled, her face shot up to see Liara staring back, her mouth agape and her eyes droopy. Shepard cast the intruding thought away and made a sly face to Liara before heading further down. Shepard pulled Liara back off the pillar causing her to gasp at the sudden change in temperature beneath her. With her back against the ground, Shepard took it upon herself to complete her goal. She went down fully, Liara's center now in front of the red-head. She held the thighs like old friends, relaxing more then she thought she would have permitted herself. She laid gentle kisses along the Asari's inner legs, taking care to nurture the finer points of each one. Liara's breaths hastened, the teasing becoming too much for her. Hand still in Shepard's hair, she forced the commander's head between her legs and elicited a small cry as Shepard's mouth made contact with the sex organ.

No amount of time could remove the memory of their previous time together. Although this felt more hurried than that time, ironically, Shepard was no less accustomed to the organ that now rested under her lips. They were a pale blue and a smell so sweet she'd almost thought that Liara jammed sugar in here. She felt through the folds with her nose and lips in mental preparation for Liara's inevitable screams. Her partner began moaning at the touches being brought to her nether regions. Not allowing Liara another second to wait, Shepard slipped her tongue into the hole beneath the folds resulting in a powerful scream from the biotic. Her body flared blue as Shepard explored the familiar interiors below. If the scent was sweet, then the ultimate taste was incomparable. She lost herself in the flavor of her lover, almost unaware of the juices that released onto her face as Liara's final scream ricocheted off the metal walls surrounding the two tangled in coitus.

Shepard ascended Liara's hot form and planted her mouth back over Liara's. The mix of flavors from Liara's two pairs of lips was unlike almost anything Shepard had ever felt, her own center moistening in response. With the Asari thoroughly pleased, Liara now turned the tables and sat up to press her body against the commander's, a breast held between one of her nimble hands. Shepard moaned at the new contact, her fingers taking position on Liara's back. Her sounds of pleasure only increased when Liara placed her mouth over Shepard's unattended breast. She bent Shepard backward, mouth still clasped, and laid Shepard down on the floor so Liara was lying over her lover's form.

Shepard's thoughts wrapped around the image of Liara; her features beautiful and smiling back at her. She grinned wider against the back drop of Shepard's eye lids as the physical Liara quickened her machinations. The feeling of Liara's agile tongue turning over her nipple was nearly unbearable with all the tension wracking her muscles. She held her hand over the Asari's blue one, squeezing it to forcibly apply pressure to herself. The following moan turned into a gasp as Liara plunged her free hand between Shepard's legs. Cera arched into the floor, ecstasy washing over her in waves. Her heart only beat harder when Liara applied a soft rubbing in circles of the hand further down. Her pleasure intensified and she barely heard her sweat drop to the floor as her orgasm built. Liara's actions became more desperate, no signs of teasing or foreplay apparent in them.

Shepard gripped Liara's hand over her core and pushed it in further, reveling in the pressure of the fingers she could feel penetrating her hole. The fingers bent and her eyes flew open in a fast groan, her orgasm reaching its apex. The fingers spread and flexed, then turned and went deeper. The sudden changes were too much on Shepard's arching form and she moaned loudly as her climax hit her like a fist to her chest. A very nice fist that loves her, that is. Pleasure flooded through her veins, her muscles flexed, and her body collapsed as she fell into heavy pants. Lips met hers and she wrapped her weakened arms around the form that now released her body. Her eyes opened to see Liara smiling back.

Now, maybe it was just the post-coital glow or her head was doing flips, but Liara had such a large smile that Shepard seriously considered whether or not their having sex unintentionally gave Liara a Chelsea grin. Her head looked as though it were about to fall off her lower jaw, leaving a massive, macabre half-grin on a neck. But, to her pleasant surprise, Liara's head stayed exactly where it was.

Liara fell to the floor beside Shepard and rested her head and a hand on Shepard's chest, her head rising and falling over Shepard's slowing breath. "I missed you so much, Cera." Her voice sounded slightly sweeter than usual, but Shepard disregarded it. Liara pressed her head further on Shepard's body.

"Yeah, me too." Shepard said, genuinely happy to be back in a similar position to two years ago. Her love of the Asari certainly included more than just her brains and her loving personality. She was a beast in the sheets and one of the strongest biotics in the galaxy, not to mention her undying loyalty to her friends and a true ally through any circumstance. But, even with all her qualities, a certain tattooed individual still rose in her mind. How was she going to deal with two loves?

Liara sensed Shepard's unease and clenched her side tenderly. "Well," she started, trying not to focus on the doubt emanating from her lover. "I-I'm glad you helped me with all this and you're more than welcome for future visits." Shepard smiled weakly.

"I'll exercise that, I'm sure." She gripped Liara's hand and they sat in relative silence, the two soldiers basking in the other's presence. There certainly wouldn't be any consequences with indulging an old flame. _Right?_

The doors to the med-bay split apart as Shepard strode in carrying a small box, a bouquet of dark flowers, and wearing the standard Cerberus casual military uniform. She was smiling as she approached the bed-ridden Jack who looked far too uncomfortable under the sheet of the cot. Dr. Chakwas walked up to Shepard, putting aside a data pad that she had been viewing.

"What's her status, doctor?" Chakwas scrutinized Shepard's face for a moment but shrugged and spoke.

"A little worse for wear, but she'll be up in a few days. The good thing about biotics is that the damage is spread throughout the entire body. Jack's whole body felt the strain but not enough to do any permanent damage. It's a good thing you brought her here so soon, otherwise that wouldn't be the case." She looked in between the two, Jack appearing slightly impatient, and made her way through the door. "I'll let you talk to her. You can tell me about the attack on the base later." The doors shut and Shepard locked them. Jack looked at her quizzically as she went to the windows and closed all the blinds. She then proceeded to disconnect the audio and visual surveillance feeds that EDI had been using to monitor the room. After she felt satisfied at their isolation, she walked over to the bare-headed woman and pulled up a stool and sat beside Jack's bed.

"How are you holding up?" Shepard said cheerfully. She figured she was just happy to see the woman again. Jack, too, looked over the commander's face but didn't shrug afterwards.

"Your face is red." Shepard dropped her grin.

"It-it's nothing, really. Just, you know them Shadow Broker agents. Tough sons of bitches." Jack raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah, not buying it, sweet cheeks. It's never as simple as dick heads trying to kill you." Shepard coughed a laugh.

"If only it were." She took a deep breath and sighed. "But it's nothing, really. Just need some time." She gave a reassuring smile to the biotic though her heart wasn't behind it. Jack rolled her eyes.

"You wanna keep secrets, fine. Just don't expect me to listen when you decide to come clean." Shepard looked away, trying to hide some of her guilt, but recovered when Jack changed the subject. "Whatcha got there?" She asked, peering over the side of the bed. Shepard lifted them up so Jack could see.

"Nothing really. Just some stuff I scrounged from the Broker's base I thought you might like. Couldn't make it to the fight so figured I should bring you something." Jack watched as Shepard placed the small box in her hands. "That's just a tape of some video feeds that the Broker is very capable of making. It's got some funny stuff; you can watch it later. And this," she pulled up the bouquet which caused Jack to bite her lips in her mouth. "Is a bouquet of-"

"Flowers!" Jack barked then burst into a fit of laughter. Shepard stared at her incredulously and waited for her to stop. Jack continued to laugh until tears welled in her eyes, her body stooped over the sheet her legs were beneath.

"Done ye-" Jack laughed again then stopped a minute later to wipe tears from her eyes.

"Fuck, that hurts. Try not to bring such funny shit next time I'm here. But God, Shepard, you're such a fucking pussy." She said with a malevolent smirk on her lips. Shepard just turned away in disgust. Her features softened when she felt something wet make contact with her cheek and the flowers were removed from her hands. She looked back to see Jack putting them on the table beside her along with the tape. "How'd that bastard go down?"

"Huh?" Shepard shook the dumbfounded look from her face "Oh, uh, tough, I guess. It turns out he was a Yahg." Jack stared, puzzled. "Ugly thing, big. He had this huge shield, too, so the only way we could kill him was by breaking the power conduit above him that absorbs lightning from the storms outside. It kind of vaporized him." Jack's eyebrows rose.

"And I missed that? Fuck. That tape better make up for it."

"Oh, I think it will. The laughs guaranteed in that little box will more than make up for a few missed lightning bolts." Jack eyed her.

"I don't know. Watching some alien explode sounds pretty fucking awesome to me." Shepard's cheeks darkened for a second, the memories of her own alien exploding shortly after the Yahg coming to mind. She shook her head, freeing the thoughts from her addled brain. _Don't think about it, don't think about her…_ Her mind droned on, whisking the thoughts from her head as a sudden force jostled her back into reality. Cera looked up to see Jack's creased brow staring her down.

She sighed in defeat. "You don't wanna tell me what's up, fine, just don't start freaking on me because of it. 'Cause, apparently, it's a big deal." Shepard opened her mouth to speak but pulled back, her face turning from the scrutiny of her girlfriend. As if following her thoughts, she felt Jack's rough fingers grip her chin softly. They released when Cera looked to her. "No, I… shit!" She threw her hands up. "I'm no good with this crap. Just go before I blow a hole in the wall." There was no anger in her voice, betraying her words to be a hollow threat. Jack just wanted to be alone. Shepard smiled sadly and stood, kissing the killer on the forehead with a stoop over the bed.

"Tell Chakwas about the tape and she'll find something to play it." Jack nodded, her eyes looking at her covered legs. Without another word to avoid anything drawn out, Shepard walked through the door. She stopped just past it and looked behind to see Jack pressing her face, eyes closed, against the bouquet of flowers through the cracks of the sealing door. Isn't it nice when things work out?

It wasn't like there weren't things to do. Collector attack over here, Blue Suns drug bust over there, and a lot of whining from the Illusive Man. It was just that Shepard had no desire to do anything outside of watching a small, rubber ball bounce relentlessly off of the wall of her cabin. The miniature projectile panged harmlessly off the metal bulkhead, falling into Shepard's open palm to prepare for another throw.

Mere hours separated the defeat of the Shadow Broker from the present, but it felt like years to the troubled commander. Sure, it was great that the Broker was out of the biz and now a trusted ally controlled his vast network, but it was the events that occurred after his defeat that swamped Cera's mind. She hadn't expected Liara to approach her like that, certainly not with Feron so close and the particles of a dead Yahg floating in the air. But it happened. And what was worse was that Shepard had let it happen. But how could she not? The young Prothean expert who was more than twice her age was still very precious to her. She couldn't just stop loving her and certainly not after such a heated display of their affections. Besides, weren't there people with two lovers? It wasn't an uncommon thing. If you love two people, then it only makes since that you should be allowed to chase them both, doesn't it?

Shepard was blasted from her mental speculations when the sound of something shattering clamored in her ears. She looked to see that her bouncy ball had gone off course and made a head-on collision with a lamp to her left on her desk, the pieces spinning to a stop and the ball rolling lazily off the counter. The ball bounced a few times then settled and rolled under Shepard's chair to stop finally when it ran into the door to her private restroom. She needed to kill something.

Cera turned her chair around, shoving the lamp pieces to the side for the moment, and began typing feverishly on her console. A few strokes later, a welcome voice came over the built-in speakers.

"Yes, Cera?" the cheery voice of Shepard's trusted friend and yeoman Kelly Chambers always made her feel better after any amount of stress. Her voice always sounded happy making it difficult to tell whether or not Kelly was actually happy or just pretending to be for others' sakes. Shepard made a mental note to sit down with Kelly at some point in the near future to figure that out.

"I'm too lazy to check, do I have any missions on my plate that would result in the death of one or more individuals?" Kelly's soft laughter echoed through the speakers and rang harmoniously in the air.

"Stressed, are we?" Shepard grumbled audibly. Another giggle came from the console. "Here, I'll check, Miss Pouty." Shepard could hear some typing noises then were replaced with Kelly's voice. "It just so happens we got an easy one. I'm guessing you don't want anything that's too stressful so there's an assignment from one of the Illusive Man's lieutenants that I think you should be able to do easily enough." Shepard nodded but spoke when she realized Kelly didn't see it.

"Alright, what is it?" She said, trying in vain not to sound too distracted.

"Some pirates on a remote world in the Traverse have raided shipments going to a Cerberus research facility and they need them back. Wanna take it?" Shepard hadn't planned on saying no but waited a second to give Kelly the impression she was considering the option.

"Yeah, I'll take it. Tell Joker to begin heading there and call Garrus and Ja-" she stopped short, realizing the resident serial killer was still bed-ridden. The thought of the woman only resurfaced her doubts and she became silent.

_Fuck,_ her mind teased. _What am I going to do with her?_ Kelly's voice interrupted her thoughts. "Garrus and who?" She asked her voice full of concern. Shepard pushed dread from her mind in an effort to remain focused.

"Um, how about, uh…" She honestly couldn't think of who to bring in placement of Jack. The killer was skilled, ruthless, thorough, and, to be quite frank, really sexy when she sent a Krogan off the side of a cliff. Not many others could match her skill on the field. However, one individual just might meet the mark for a quick pirate nab. "Call down Kasumi. She could use some fresh air." A few key strokes were heard over the speakers and Kelly spoke a moment later.

"She'll be there. Want me to set up the shuttle?"

"Nah, I'll take care of it."

"Alright, Cera. See you when you come down here?" Her voice betrayed her eagerness to see the commander. Shepard laughed to herself.

"Sure will." With that, she ended the call and sat back in the chair putting her hands behind her head. Maybe a minor pirate bust didn't stop the Reapers, but she sure wasn't about to without clearing her head first and a small assignment like this was the perfect break. Not to mention she had spent far too little time with the ship's kleptomaniac. After tossing a couple mercenaries in the brig, she might just be able to confront the situation of her muddled love life with a level head; but first, a shower. It had been too long since she had enjoyed such a luxury.

Shepard stood and opened the door to her restroom kicking the ball still on the floor out of her office where it bounced harmlessly against the base of the wall. She walked in the small room and sealed the door before disrobing and starting the water. While she had her own private restroom with shower, it wasn't necessarily the most comfortable shower. She actually preferred the ones on the crew deck, but she was expected to use her own. Not to mention she was always treated differently when seen by her female officers. The experience was comparable to a gay boy in the men's locker room in a high school. Everyone assumes they're checking everyone else out just because they're attracted to the same sex. But the showers still felt better.

She stepped in, the water already flowing, and allowed the cool liquid to wash over her tarnished body. She'd actually lost count of the days since her last cleansing; she'd been far too busy for such trivialities. Yet now she needed to wash. Remnants of the day still saturated her skin which made for quite a queasy concoction. She took care to soap, scrub, and scrape every nook of herself, imagining she was removing her thoughts as well as physical discrepancies.

Once she felt sufficiently soaked, she twisted the knob sealing the flow of water and stepped out for towel application. Thinking of discrepancies, she was really glad Jack didn't have crazy smelling or something. _I mean, what if she smelled Liara? Oh god, I don't even wanna think about that…_ Regardless of what she was telling herself, she thought about it. She cringed at the mental images.

She threw the now wet towel in a bin that concealed itself in the wall and went out into her room down to the closet. The metal locker crooked and split apart when Shepard pressed her hand on the wall panel, revealing her preassembled hard suit hanging in all its glory on a set of hooks and pins. _Wait, I'm Commander Fucking Shepard_, her mine droned on as she began placing on her hard suit. _If anyone can support two relationships, it's me. As long as you love one person, you can love them both, right?_ She thought on the notion. _Right._ Satisfied with her choices for the moment, she completed putting on the crimson suit and looked down at her armored form. Everything was on correctly and she double checked to make sure the kinetic barriers were online. Wouldn't want to get killed by the first shot, after all.

_This isn't a good idea, seriously. Just keep going, don't stop here, turn back. Garrus and the Japanese girl are waiting; go!_ Her mind battled relentlessly, unable to choose the right course of action as the elevator left the CIC. _No, stay right here. Go to her, tell you love her! C'mon, you've done it before, now do it again!_ It seemed the second side of her brain was winning. _Yeah, with Liara. Just make it easier for everyone and forget the psycho_.

Shepard walked out of the elevator and walked down the corridor, her mind too focused on her task to notice her surroundings. The door that presented her goal parted revealing the still prone form of Jack. _This is a mistake…_ "Shut up," she muttered to herself. She would not back down because of some tiny doubt in the back of her brain.

Jack looked up, visibly surprised at the appearance of her commander. Her face changed to that of a sly one. "Oh look whose back. Want to mope some mo-" Her sentence was silenced when Shepard kissed her, her body knelt beside the medical cot. Jack showed no hesitation and grabbed Shepard's red hair in her tattooed fist, pulling the commander further into her lips. Shepard savored the flavor of her partner before their mouths parted leaving the two panting for breath. "Wow," Jack said between breaths. "Can't say I… really expected you to do that." Shepard grinned.

"What can I say? I'm a lover." Jack knocked her over the head.

"Sure, and a fighter. Now just go. Goons won't kill themselves." She thought a moment after she spoke. "Well, not unless I'm there." Shepard laughed.

"I'm not really in the mood to deal with suicides at the moment so I'll just let you stay here." Jack made an effort to pout. "Don't worry, I'll try to bring you a souvenir." Jack grabbed Cera's chin and brought her in for a second kiss then released her grasp.

"I'd rather have a different gift but whatever." Shepard blushed as she stood and composed herself.

"Wish me luck," she said as she strode back to the door. Jack merely waved at the fleeting form of her girlfriend and watched for the second time that day as she left the infirmary. The convict behind, her mind returned. _I'm telling you, you can't do this…_ "I can…" Doubt was buried in her voice, but she pushed it back. Maybe that shower wasn't enough. Perhaps she just needed to get away for a while.


	10. So Fuck You and Thanks

The invitations were sent and the party would soon be in full swing. Jack found herself getting a tad bit excited but knew better than to show such petty emotions. She smiled cheerfully as she greeted each of the individuals walking through her door.

She stood in the plaza of an elaborate ball room with the marble floor covered in elegant designs embedded in the mineral. Diamond chandeliers hung overhead basking the room in a dark but warm glow. Tables had been set across the floor and were adorned with the finest dishware this side of Illium. A few guests had already been seated by the servants, their dresses and pampered suits meshing perfectly with the priceless scenery, but droves still walked through the stained glass doors to be personally greeted by one of the two gracious hosts.

Jack wore her best dress, the black silk hugging her curves in all the right places and the lack of straps showing her flawless collar. Her pale skin shone beautifully in the light from the chandeliers. Her head was shaved but that didn't seem to bother any of the guests. She smiled brightly as one approached her. The woman looked middle-aged and had her arm wound politely around what Jack assumed to be the woman's husband's arm. The man smiled but otherwise remained silent as his date extended a gloved hand.

"It is such a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Shepard." Jack stared at the hand for a moment. _Mrs. Shepard?_ Realizing how dumb she looked, she quickly shook the hand while blushing lightly.

"Truly, the pleasure's all mine." Suddenly, the surroundings didn't seem so familiar. Married? To Shepard? "One of our servants will seat you two. Please enjoy yourselves." The couple gushed as they walked to the waiting area to be seated. Out of the corner of her eye, Jack noticed what appeared to be blood on the woman's glove as she walked past. Jack didn't recall seeing that a moment ago. She looked down at her own hands and gasped as she saw the milky, crimson substance coating both of her forearms. It glistened softly in the dim lighting, seemingly ignored by all the people in attendance. A rude cough brought Jack's face back up to the line of guests waiting to meet her.

"Am I going to stand here all day or are you going to let me in?" The callous comment came from the woman standing before Jack. Unlike the other guests, her skin with a stark blue and her hair was replaced by odd tendrils that tapered off at the back of her head. Her features were, for lack of a better word, gorgeous. Jack found the word too good for her but she truly was. Her skin practically glowed and her eyes were framed perfectly by the light blue freckles lining the border of her face. She was almost a sort of doll-cute. She assumed that her smile made mountains blush.

A second cough dragged her from her thoughts. "Um, yes, sorry," she started with a small laugh. "Got distracted." The woman raised her brow as though this were all familiar to her. "Uh, who are you? I can't seem to recog-"

"Liara T'soni." She cut in. Her features didn't change. If she was impatient, she was good at hiding it. The name clicked in her mind and she nodded, extending her blood soaked hand. Liara ignored the gesture. "I'll assume I can enter, then?" Jack revoked the hand and nodded again though more solemnly this time. Liara merely turned to Jack's left and disappeared behind her. That woman ground her the wrong way. She was alarmingly familiar though she couldn't quite remember why. The name had just been on a list that she had memorized before the ball began.

She turned back to the line of guests to find that the doors had been closed and was now greeted by silence. She turned around and saw that all the guests were seated at their respective tables, chatting endlessly while enjoying wine that had been making its way around the room. Every single person seated had a hand touched with blood. Now that Jack was looking out into the room, it seemed that shadows were permeating from every edge of the room. The lights dimmed but the guests only grew louder. A touch to her bare shoulder jolted her from her observations, the hair on the back of her neck standing at the contact. Her eyes turned and were met by the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen. Cera was standing right there, her bright, red hair encircling her strong features, wearing a similar dress to Jack's though a dark maroon and with straps. The freckles on her face creased as Shepard smiled sweetly, causing Jack to bush slightly.

"Hello, dear," Cera said as she gave Jack a quick kiss on the lips. "I hope the guests weren't too much trouble." Suddenly, Jack felt the power to convey all her worries.

"Shepard, there was this girl being rude and then there was blood and the room got dark and someone called me Mrs. and when I-" A second kiss silenced her concerns, this one more drawn out.

"Shh, it's alright. Everyone's here and everything's fine; just how you wanted it." Her words were coated with candy and exactly what Jack needed to hear. "Let me take care of this for you," Cera said as she pulled a handkerchief from thin air, grabbed Jack's bloodied arms, and wiped the filth as though it were nothing. The blood didn't return, allowing Jack to see her pale hands for the first time this evening. When she looked back up, Shepard was smiling back at her brightly and the shadows in the room had vanished.

Jack was speechless at her wife's mysterious powers. Shepard responded by putting an arm over her lover's shoulders and guiding her to a smaller table with two seats. A butler placed a bottle of red wine in the center of the table before pulling out the two seats and left as Shepard dismissed him. When Shepard seated Jack, her remaining troubles seemed to alleviate from her mind. Cera was right: everything was how she wanted it. It was perfect, soft, warm, organized, controlled, exactly how she always wanted everything. For the first time tonight, she smiled of her own accord. Perfect.

The remainder of the ball was spent with fine food in good company, familiar faces occasionally appearing and no more thoughts of blood or mean, blue girls. Shepard was gracious to everyone and Jack enjoyed herself more than she was willing to admit. The night continued on without a hitch as the drinks flowed and the food ran out. Soon enough, guests began departing, their clean hands clasping Jack's once more as they strode out the doors. Few still remained, their teeth stained by the aged wine, when Shepard stood from her shared table with Jack.

"Cera?" Jack asked. She felt too good to let the best part of this walk away for a second.

"Sorry, dear, just have to take care of something. Won't be but a moment." The reassurance was enough to quell Jack's fears and so she nodded and watched her love disappear into the distance.

The shadows crept back under the chairs and around the draped table cloths as Jack watched the last of the guests leave. Now she sat in complete silence, even the servants having left with crisp nods. Jack didn't have a watch, but she assumed that a great deal of time had passed since Shepard had gone to do… whatever it was she had gone to do. Impatience and curiosity overtook the small woman and she stood, smoothing down her dress back to its former glory.

The only exits from the room seemed to be the stained glass double doors and a lone wooden door at the far end of the room. Jack made the assumption that Shepard had gone through there and approached it quickly. The empty tables seemed to taunt her as she passed, their perfect perfectness perfectly framing the perfect dinner ware in perfect perfection. Jack spat at one of the tables. She didn't want perfect anymore; she wanted Shepard.

She reached the door and twisted the simple knob only to have her hand stopped by the internal lock. Whatever Shepard was doing, she didn't want to be disturbed. Jack shrugged. _That sucks_. Jack grabbed the side of the dress at the base and ripped a straight line up to her waist so she could lift her leg. Rearing back, she lunged forward with a powerful kick that knocked the flimsy door off its hinges and into the darkness beyond. The shadows flooded the room, snuffing the light from the chandeliers. Jack stood for a second to allow her eyes to absorb what light they could from the distant stained glass doors. When she could see enough to keep from falling over, she stepped through the doorway.

The room smelled of dust and negligence, brooms, boxes, and buckets stacked along the walls. Other hallways were blocked off by the clutter but a single path was wound throughout the mess. Jack continued to follow the winding trail until she couldn't see any further. She stood, hoping there was some dim light that her eyes could use, but none came. The pitch black pinched her senses and forced her to hug her arms. The action made her gasp when a bizarre liquid stuck to her arms. She sniffed her hands and closed her eyes when she realized what had happened. The blood on her hands had returned.

She didn't have time to dwell on the implications of the event as she was startled by the sound of laughter coming from the blackness beyond. At last, a lead! Without a second to lose, she bolted in the direction of the growing sound. She knocked over boxes, fell into pales, and got multiple smacks to the face from assorted cleaning utensils. The punishment seemed to go on for hours, the laughter growing gradually louder until she smashed into a door, her hands leaving trails of blood as she slumped to the floor in a heap. She shook her head and stood while brushing herself off, leaving more stains on her dress.

She was about to knock on the door when she stopped. The laughter was definitely coming from this room, but there was a second, softer voice. She couldn't make out the words, yet she recognized it all the same. Shepard was in there. The nature of the laughter wasn't making her feel any better, either. Without hesitation, she brought up her leg for a second time and kicked the door in. The scene beyond caused bile to well in her stomach.

Shepard was dressed only in her under garments and was tangled around the form of the blue woman from before who was wearing, well, nothing. Jacks face paled and tears streamed down her cheeks. _How dare you!?_ Her mind screamed. Shepard looked up like a deer caught in the headlights. Liara just turned her head back with a smug grin on her face. The only mountain that smile would be moving was Jack's foot to her face. Shepard opened her mouth as she untangled herself from Liara only to be silenced as Jack jumped onto her. Her fingers stretched across the red-head's throat, the blood from her hands seeping onto Shepard's flawless skin. _How could everything right go so wrong?_

Jack continued crying as Shepard's life ebbed away beneath her grasp, Liara watching on in amusement. The soft hands over her bloodied ones fell away when Cera's life finally left her body. Jack, tears soaking her skin, leaned down and kissed the lips of the lover she killed. The blood and tears mixed under her kiss. She looked up to the blue vixen, Jack's face covered in blood, to see Liara smiling back wickedly.

"Isn't that much easier than dealing with your problems?" The asari laughed maniacally as Jack became angry with her cold words.

"You don't know the first thing about dealing with life, you bitch!" Jack stood and tried to reach out for the woman who stole her wife from her only to fall into a gait. She went slower and slower until her body stopped inches from Liara. The blue woman stood, her body glowing under the dim, disembodied light flooding the room.

"Please. You are primitive. Uneducated. What could you have ever done for her? Or anyone?" She stared Jack in the eyes for what seemed like years before she smiled sweetly. "Nothing, that's what. 'Cause that's what you are." She placed her hot palm against Jack's forehead. "_Nothing_." She shoved her hand forward throwing Jack out into the black.

"Shit!" Jack bolted up in her bed, sweat flying off her brow and onto the sheets. The action made her injured bones buckle under her muscles. Machines beside her squealed in alarm startling the risen convict. She shoved a weak hand to the side, sending the machines crashing into a far wall in a blast of blue energy. When hands were planted firmly on her chest, she swung another pulse that shoved the offending figure to the floor. Jack, under protest from her bones, began to clamber from her bed. Her mind was racing and her vision was cloudy but she needed to get to her!

There was a shuffle then something pierced her neck. She padded the punctured skin uselessly as her vision blackened and she crumbled to the floor.

Only a moment passed and her eyes opened a second time, though this time less violently. Her vision cleared relatively quickly and she saw the face of Dr. Chakwas hovering above her. A scratch streaked across her forehead starting from her right brow and ending just next to her left ear. The wound bled slightly leaving a trail of thick blood going down the left side of her face. She appeared to be moving Jack's limbs but for what purpose Jack couldn't decipher. She tried moving her legs only to be met by a sharp pain from the stubborn extremity.

She looked around beyond the doctor to see they were in the Normandy's infirmary. Right where she had been. Relief flooded over her, the memories of blood on her hands still just a little too vivid.

"Please try not to move." Jack turned back to Chakwas who was still messing with Jack's arms. Jack moved her arms with her shoulders in discomfort. Chakwas closed her eyes as she stopped for a second before looking at Jack. "Please; you're making this more difficult than it needs to be." The only times Jack ever heard those words were when people tried to hurt her.

Panicking, she sent pulses of blue down her arms that pushed Chakwas a few feet back and tried again to make a break for it; tried being the optimal word. She merely sat there, paralyzed, with blue cascading down her sending medical utensils around the room in flurries. After realizing how fruitless her efforts were, she calmed and the biotics dissipated much to the doctor's relief. Jack let her head sink into the thin padding of the bed and closed her eyes. _Now what's going to happen?_

"When Shepard brought you onto the ship injured, I knew you'd be difficult to treat, but this…" Jack opened an eye to see Chakwas gesturing to the mess that the convict had created. "This is a little much." She stared Jack in the eyes. The doctor's eyes, though professional, betrayed a deep frustration. Jack would usually retort with some snide comment, but at the moment, she couldn't care less. Her body felt broken and useless and she needed to be somewhere right now. She had to do something and she couldn't remember what.

She could feel the doctor's hands on her prone form again. "The fuck you doin', doc?" Jack tried to yell but it only came out as soft words.

"Trying to administer drugs that will keep you paralyzed for the next few hours." Jack's eyes opened and she tried to move again in a futile attempt to free herself from the sadistic doctor. "It won't help, Jack." Chakwas replied, her eyes still glued to Jack's left arm. Jack did her best to face Chakwas.

"I need to be somewhere. Right now! Let me go!" Jack's voice began to sound more like herself though still quiet. Chakwas let go of the limp arm, inspected her work, and laid Jack's gown on her body that Jack had failed to realize was missing.

"You're not going anywhere like this. That stunt you tried to pull probably cost you another twelve hours of recovery so you got no one to blame but yourself for this." After Chakwas finished her statement, she started going about the room picking up everything Jack had trashed. Jack sighed heavily. _Now what?_ She asked herself again. She was shackled to her bed by her own actions. She was a caged animal. Maybe she needed to be caged. Whatever it was she had planned before she'd been paralyzed she was sure it wasn't good. But why should she care? If someone was about to take a beating from her, they clearly deserved it. Right?

The doors to the infirmary parted, the sound of the shifting gears echoing through the confined space. Jack turned her head as far as was possible to see something she didn't know she'd been waiting for. The esteemed red-haired commander of the SR-2 walked in, armor still on, and ran to Jack's bedside. Chakwas finished her machinations and attempted to draw Shepard's attention from the bed-ridden maniac. Shepard shrugged off her words as she clenched Jack's hand.

"The hell have you been?" Jack had never been so happy to see her and her tone betrayed that. Shepard smiled and kissed Jack, holding it for a moment before falling back to the bedside in her low crouch.

"I'm sorry, I had-"

"Commander, this is important." Chakwas interrupted, apparently unaffected by the two girls' display of affection. Shepard sighed, her head turned down. She gave Jack a glance that showed her annoyance and kissed the girl's hand before responding to the Chakwas' wishes.

"Alright, what's so important?" Chakwas seemed relieved that Shepard had gotten up at all but retained a professional visage. She glanced quickly to Jack then motioned for Cera to follow her. Shepard sighed again and shook her head as she followed the doctor to the corner of the room where Jack couldn't hear.

Jack was overjoyed by Shepard's return from… wherever she was, but now uncertainty crept into her mind. Seeing the beautiful woman again brought back some rather unpleasant memories. Were they memories? A dark room, a blue woman… blood. No, it was a dream, of course. Not even that; a nightmare. Jack breathed easy under that knowledge. Yet, she couldn't shake the feeling that at least something about that nightmare was right. Not in the moral sense, but factually, and that scared her.

Shepard walked back to Jack as Chakwas left the room. She almost seemed happy to be leaving the two. _Bitch_. Shepard appeared disheartened as she pulled up a stool and gripped Jack's hand again.

"Guess she drugged you up then, eh?"

"Yeah. Bitch knocked me out when I tried to leave." Shepard laughed.

"Chakwas mentioned that. I can hardly believe that you were even able to stand." Jack glared. "Yeah yeah, alright, maybe it's not _too_ unbelievable, but you're still bed-ridden with fractured bones." Jack felt Shepard's grip tighten as she mentioned the convict's injured skeletal structure. Jack willed her hand to clench back but it only twitched slightly in the commander's palm. Shepard looked down at the hand and sighed. "Kinda wish she hadn't paralyzed you, though. What were you doing that made her think it necessary?" Guess Chakwas didn't tell her that part. Jack rolled her eyes.

"All I did was knock around a few things and push her to the ground. She's losing it." Shepard made a face. "It's not my fuckin' fault!"

"I don't know, sounds like she was just afraid for her life or someone else's." Oh, right, that. What was it she was about to do anyway? Shepard nudged Jack from her thoughts. "What's wrong?" Her tone had changed. It caressed Jack's ears like a warm breeze.

"Nothing. Mind your own business." She didn't need to know about her nightmare. Not yet. It wasn't even important. It was just a nightmare. She wasn't about to be a pussy and cry over some stupid dream.

"I don't believe you, but I respect your right to your privacy."

"Shut up. You don't believe that and you know it." Shepard grinned and raised her hands in mock defense.

"Got me there. I just know when to drop a subject."

"Good, 'cause we ain't talkin' about it." With that said, Jack looked back down at their intertwined hands with renewed interest. Even though she wasn't in the mood to start spewing her life's story, she was glad Shepard was there at all. Shepard caressed Jack's bare hand with her gloved one generating a warm spot on the back of her hand. Cera turned over the hand to reveal the multitude of tattoos on the back of the appendage.

"Hey, you told me about your tattoos," Shepard started, changing the subject. "But you never told me about specific ones. What's the story behind this one?" Jack studied her hand for a second, assuming Shepard meant the circle that shot to her knuckles, and tried to remember why she got that one. An identical one was on her opposite hand and both were placed for the same reason. They were some of those 'why the fuck not' tattoos.

"I like popping my knuckles so I got tats over 'em." Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Weren't expecting some grand tale of me killing a million people or something, were ya?"

"Well kinda. The actual reason's kind of boring," Shepard complained. Jack laughed, her face hurting from not smiling for so long.

"Fine, I'll make some shit up. Um, there was this transport of civilians leaving Omega. Probably just some idiots that decided the street life was too tough for their weak skin." Shepard leaned forward, her ears soaking up every word of Jack's false tale. "I had just knocked some asshole out for hustling me when the ship flew over. I saw the insignia of the Blue Suns on the bottom of it and thought I'd do some clean up. I knocked the ship as it passed from the sky with my biotics and went to the crash."

"This sounds like a far more plausible story than you just liking to pop your knuckles." Jack shrugged.

"But when I got to the crash, all the passengers were gone. I searched but couldn't even find the damn pilot. I heard a step behind me and the clicking of a firearm so I threw up a barrier when someone starting shooting me. They were weak slugs, probably a pistol, so I turned around and yanked the bastard to me. It was a civilian from the ship and had a pistol marked by the Blue Suns upgrades on its stock. He started begging when I smashed his face in with my fist."

"Clever idea for explaining the circles around your knuckles," Shepard chided. Jack huffed in irritation.

"If you're gonna keep interrupting then we're just gonna leave it at popping knuckles." Shepard raised her hands again.

"No no, I'm just commenting. Trying to break up the conversation."

"This isn't a conversation. I'm telling a damn story and I don't tell them often so shut the fuck up." Shepard laughed and kissed Jack's hand before making a zipper movement across her lips. Jack sighed and continued. "Anyway, I guess that asshole's buddies didn't like what I did so they all came out from where they were cowering and started taking shots. None were wearing armor and all had Blue Suns modded weapons. I just tossed some off the edge, shot two, broke two more, and held the last as my barrier died. She was bloodied from the beating I gave her and she said I wouldn't stop the Blue Suns or some bullshit. I didn't know what she was talking about so I beat her with me fists until she died. Showed them 'cause they didn't fuck with me again 'til I was thrown into Purgatory." Shepard let out a low whistle.

"Sounds real. Sure that isn't the true story?"

"That was for one of my back tattoos."

"Why didn't you just say that from the beginning?"

"What, I'm not allowed poetic license?"

"Well I'd just rather have the real story first."

"You did but you decided knuckles were boring so I pulled some shit from my head."

"And that was more exciting except-"

"Shut up! This isn't going anywhere!" Jack turned her head. Shepard could be really irritating sometimes. She didn't know when to fucking shut up. Jack was caught by surprise when her head was turned back around and her lips were met by the other woman's pair. Jack pushed into it suddenly craving more. She urged her hands to move only for them to shake slightly. Shepard released the kiss and kissed her cheek before falling back.

"You overreact too much."

"Oh, I overreact? Who destroyed that moon for no reason, huh!?" Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Oh right, that was me. Forget it." Her cheeks darkened causing Shepard to laugh again. She silently hoped Shepard wouldn't be leaving any time soon. However her own actions weren't really helping that goal. Jack tried to move her hand a third time and, to her pleasant surprise, it responded to her internal struggle and weakly clenched Shepard's hand. She turned her head choosing to act nonchalant. She felt the hand squeeze back when a mechanic beep echoed through the room. Jack turned to see Shepard release the convict's hand and relinquish a communicator from her belt. Her face paled when she looked at it making Jack curious at what was displayed on it. Shepard shoved the thing callously back into her belt and stood, much to Jack's disappointment.

"I'm really sorry, but I just got this message-"

"Don't explain yourself to me. Just go." Shepard tried to smile at her but only managed a smirk that made her look sick. Jack huffed and pressed her head back.

"Really, I want to stay, but-"

"_Go_." Jack repeated, fury welling in her voice. She didn't want to hear any bull shit excuse. There was a moment of silence before she heard the doors part and shut leaving her alone in the Normandy's infirmary.

_Alone_. That was a word that used to make her feel safe. Alone, away from anyone who could hurt her. But Shepard was her new haven and, even though she was coping with it, it still pissed her off. She lived alone and that was that. The less connections the better. But Shepard… she was unreal. And now that brick wall in her life was starting to crumble. The images from the nightmare haunted her thoughts and she pushed them back. She was good at doing that. But how long would she be able to keep these negative thoughts from her life?

Sleep frightened her so she chose to stare into the mess hall beyond the infirmary as she organized her thoughts. Shadows had begun crowding her perfect life.


	11. Thanksgiving Special - Pass the Guilt

"Fuck, I'm starving." Jack's harsh words pierced the darkness around her destroying the silence that had settled in the belly of the Normandy. The ex-con sat up slowly and yanked on the cord beside her that lit her surroundings with a dying light. She pressed her palms against her scalp in an attempt to push out the last of her grogginess. Her cot wasn't the sweetest place to sleep but she'd be damned if she was gonna ask the commander for anything better. She had her pride to look out for. It was already wounded by the fact that she was still ship-ridden due to her physical injury at the biotic hands of that crazy asari spectre. The metal brace keeping her back straight was a constant reminder of that. She'd be rid of it soon, though. She hoped.

Jack stood gingerly and carefully reached back far beneath the cot to a tiny hole she had punched in the floor some time ago and pulled out a small case of lip-stick. Holding it in her hands, she stared at it with a hint of dismay in her eyes. She detested anyone who felt so insecure about themselves or what their peers thought of them that they needed to drown their faces in make-up. Yet, here she was with a dwindling supply of the shit: deep, dark, maroon lip-stick. It and the light eye shadow she smeared callously over her eye lids were the only cosmetics she wore. The eye shadow because she couldn't get tattoos there and the lip-stick to cover the past. She set the case down and drew out her last stick of the horrid substance, pushed out the last bit to the tip, and pressed it to her bare lips. It smeared the dark red over her full lips covering her precious skin with its synthetic texture. Beneath it vanished the tiny scar on the left side of her mouth. The crimson of her scar was the exact shade as the lip-stick making anyone who looked at it think she was just clumsy with her make-up and that was fine. Better than having to explain her most embarrassing mark. Her most painful mark.

The duty done, she took the remnants of the lip-stick and its case and vaporized them in her hands. Better that way.

She took a moment to splash on the eye shadow, turned off the lamp, and wobbled up the stairs to the upper deck. It wasn't until she had almost reached the elevator that she realized how quiet it was. She couldn't hear Grunt's pacing, Zaeed's ramblings, or the engineers' constant chatter. She wouldn't care under other circumstances, their problems weren't hers, but their simultaneous absence made her uneasy. She checked each of their rooms and the engine room to confirm that her fellow deck mates her gone. If it was lunch or dinner, that might explain why they were all gone. But that was only if the people gone weren't the people gone. Grunt didn't care about people enough to stay in the mess, Zaeed usually got kicked out, and the two buddy buddies usually returned down here to eat together. Tali was hardly ever down here anyway so that wasn't too surprising. But the others...

The only way to find out was to go up. First, however, she wanted to check the CIC to see if the situation was the same there. She rode the elevator in silence with her arms crossed. The brace clamped against her back was nothing short of uncomfortable and made it impossible for her to do anything she wanted to. Stupid doctors and their devices. She shifted cautiously trying not to damage her back any further but also trying to stretch a cramp out of her spine.

The doors peeled back to reveal a ghost town. Not a single person was there. Jack stepped out from the elevator turning her head all about in search of life. Every chair, every station, even Joker's seat at the end of the deck, all vacant. Her usual emptiness multiplied by the absence of the crew. She needed to find someone before the smashed the hull sending herself into the vacuum.

"Where the fuck is everyone, EDI?" She said out loud knowing that the ship-board AI was ever-present.

"Away," it replied in its hollow faux-feminine voice.

"That didn't answer the God-damn question. Now _where_, keyword, the _fuck_, demanding, is _everyone_, the bitches who are not in this room. And who the hell is controlling the ship?" A moment passed in irritating silence allowing rage to begin developing in Jack's starving and now lonely gut.

"I am in command of the ship until the crew returns to their posts," EDI finally replied. Jack could have assumed that. Maybe it was a stupid question, though. Of course EDI controlled the ship. She controlled the damn doors when people weren't staring at them directly. "As for the location of the crew, that information is classified." Now Jack was getting pissed.

"Fuck you too, EDI." Jack quipped before turning abruptly back to the elevator. She immediately regretted the action as a jolt of pain shot from the brace on her back making her wince as she hobbled back to the safety of the lift. She swung her fist with her body smacking the hollow-panel with her limp appendage sending the elevator one floor down. She was gonna get to the bottom of this and there would be hell to pay when she did. The last time some told her something was 'classified', she ended up making a hit-list of every sorry sod who ever looked at her the wrong way. Now would be no different.

By the time she arrived on the crew deck, her back had recovered from her folly and she walked as cooly as she could through the metal doors as they slid apart. Her ears were met once more with deafening silence. She'd had enough of this crap.

She walked briskly to her right and counted the seconds to the corner. Three, the repeating tiles on the wall seemed to mock her with each step, two, the end was close and so too were her answers, one, she could make out the edge of the mess and what appeared to be...

"HAPPY THANKSGIVING!" A thousand voices erupted like a blast from a volcano, the ashes from the blast mingling with each other in the heated air. Everyone from the ship, Garrus, Thane, Joker, the engineers, Tali, Chakwas, the Cerberus crew, the rest of the gang, even Shepard, were all standing around make-shift tables covered in plates and trays and dismantled pieces of armor piled with food from all over. Every single person was facing jack with smiles on their faces though whether is was because of her being there or the food she didn't know. But whatever it was, she just had the living shit scared out of her.

She stumbled to the side and grabbed the wall for support before she could be pulled down by her reluctant brace. Shepard was at her side in seconds and walked her over to a seat near the infirmary. Once seated, everyone else followed. Jack received a few smiles, some gentle pats on her shoulders, and a thumbs up or two before everyone turned to the bountiful feasts set before each person. Jack sat dumbfounded not sure about whether she should just eat the hardly cooked ham in front of her or send a shockwave into the middle of the mess hall. Her thoughts were broken by a press of something moist but soft against her lips. She looked to see Shepard smiling back at her with the most gentle, caring expression Jack had ever seen. _I swear to god, Jack, if you cry, I'll fucking kill you_, her mind goaded. She suppressed the tears by retreating into the recesses of her mind. Better that way.

"Shepard, what the hell?" Jack said gesturing to her surroundings. The silence had quickly been replaced by the sounds of eating, laughter, drinks, and what seemed to be positive conversation. The sight of it all was baffling to Jack but she didn't dare give Shepard the satisfaction of knowing her amazement.

"Well, since it is a human vessel, they decided they needed to celebrate an old holiday on this day."

"Not that, idiot. The looking at me and... saying stuff and... nice things..." Jack grew increasingly quiet as the sentence drew on until the last words were barely audible mumbles. Shepard just grinned her all-too cheerful smile at Jack and playfully pinched her side.

"I thought you could use something nice for once so I got the whole crew to do it." Jack was, to say the least, surprised by that. No one had ever done something like this for her and it was... "Did ya like it?" Shepard asked with a grin.

"Tch, it was whatever. I didn't need this." Shepard only smiled wider in response as Jack scooted closer to her on their bench. "Now c'mon, I'm fucking starving."

"Cera," Jack said as her girlfriend helped her down onto her cot. Shepard sat down next to her and held her hand in her lap gently tracing the tattoos across her knuckles. Jack's instinct told her to pull back her hand but she felt... safe. She liked it. For once.

"You were saying?" Shepard said with a mischievous smirk knowing full well what was going through her partner's mind. Jack turned her head away.

"Uh, nothing. Just... fuck. I'm-"

"No good at the soft stuff. I know, Jack," Shepard said as she pecked Jack on the cheek. "And you're welcome. I know I didn't have to get that together but I figured you needed a little something after all the shit falling down around us. It's only a matter of time before we can't sit back anymore."

"Yeah. Better enjoy this, huh?" Jack said turning back to Shepard. Her face was so strong with her built jaw line and her fierce eyes, but the smooth curves of the skin stretching over bone reflecting in the dim glow showed a soft beauty the only complimented her strength. Jack wondered if Shepard ever saw that about herself. She hoped no one else did 'cause then it'd be her little secret. Commander Shepard: the beautiful warrior. _Her_ beautiful warrior.

She grabbed Shepard and pulled her in to press her lips against the other woman's. Shepard was quick to wrap her arms around the smaller girl's waist and deepened the kiss. Jack never figured she'd be in a situation like this. _Dating_, such a fucking terrible word, this woman who seemed impossibly perfect. She was strong and smart and didn't put up with anyone's shit just like Jack. But she was also things Jack was not like kind and generous and showed things to Jack that seriously made her rethink things about her ways. She honestly never thought she'd ever meet another person who could change her life. Yet here they were, two humans perfectly entwined on the bottom of a ship set to save the galaxy drifting through an ancient holiday carrying nothing but good feelings and shallow fears.

Shepard pulled away from the kiss leaving Jack mouthing the air hoping that the warmth would return to her darkened lips. SHe opened her eyes to see Shepard standing. She immediately tried to stop her but stopped herself when she realized how foolish, and dangerous, that would be. So she settled for laying down on the cot and playing with Shepard's hand as she stood staring down at Jack.

"Sorry, I have to-"

"Don't say anything. You don't need to. I'll be here, or there, or wherever. Just... thanks for today." That was all Shepard was gonna get out over her so she stooped down, kissed her precious ex-con on the cheek, and walked out of the room. Jack listened as her footsteps faded and the sound of compressors above her sounded the departure of the elevator. Alright, she liked Shepard. A little. Well, her tongue, most definitely. Just a little, though. She'd never depend on that woman for anything, surely. Right?

Who was she kidding. It was Thanksgiving and she was in-

* * *

><p>"I'm so glad you could make it," Liara said as she strode across the vast room that was the headquarters of her Shadow Broker operation. Shepard walked in tow behind her and followed her to the room up the stairs. Liara's drell ally Feron would usually found here but he was on a mission elsewhere so in his place was a small table surrounded by two chairs and atop the table rested a small menagerie of edible delicacies. Liara pulled the closer chair back and waited for Shepard to sit before pushing the chair back in. She walked to the other side to sit in the opposite chair. The two woman sat staring at each other in comfortable silence for some time before Liara spoke again.<p>

"I'm glad you're here, Shepard."

"Glad to be here, Liara, as always," Shepard replied as she reached for the bottle of wine in the middle of the table. She didn't know how Liara got it but she wasn't about the ask. The Shadow Broker had her ways.

"I figured you wouldn't want to come, though." Liara began placing various foods on her dish in a calculated manner making sure she had proper portions.

"Why do you think that? Of course I'd come." Shepard sipped some wine from her glass before setting it down and grabbing food as well. Although she snatched more meat than anything else which Liara just shook her head at.

"You had the celebration on the Normandy so I thought you would be too full if not uninterested to come here." She took her fork and knife and carefully cut a slice of her meat before placing the morsel on her tongue to chew quietly. Her time spent with humans had given her more appreciation for their style of eating and now prefered it over her own. Their utensils were genius in her opinion and she vowed that she would continue to use them for as long as she lived.

"No, no..." Shepard said with a bit of longing at the end of her words. "It was fun but I dont' think I ate enough," she lied. She certainly ate enough with Jack but a little more never hurt. Anything to keep up her double life. "Besides, I wasn't about to leave you alone on a cold ship in the middle of a storm on this day." She flashed a smile to the asari before diving into a chunk of bread hoping to smother the words at the source. Lies, lies, lies...

"Well then, I'm again glad that you're here. It gets lonely here and it's nice to have you with me." Liara's smile made Shepard's insides clench. Against her better judgement, she returned the gesture. What else could she do? Every lie she gave was like punching herself in the stomach. It grated on her mind like a stone and she didn't know how much longer she could keep this up. She just needed to make Liara happy. She deserved that more than anything. She'd saved her life to God's sake.

"No problem," she said quickly as she stuffed another food item down her throat. Muffled by the food, she spoke again wanting to change the subject. "Urm, whurt," she paused to moment to swallow. " What's the plan for after this? I mean, if you don't mind my asking." Liara laughed lightly at the commander to composed herself before replying.

"You'll just have to wait and see, won't you?" She took another bite from her fork with a smile on her face. Shepard knew exactly what she was talking about and she dreaded having to give her the biggest lie of all.

This charade with Liara was beginning to take its toll on her sanity and she wanted nothing more than to pass out in Jack's tattooed, skinny, scarred arms. But she owed this to Liara, didn't she? Shepard wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for Liara's caring, love, and selflessness. This was her duty to Liara and she would see it through. She had to. But no one could know. No one.

Happy Thanksgiving.


	12. I'm Here for You

_Curve, curve, pinch the top, taper the bottom, line, line, line... looks like me; looks like her..._ Kelly thought as she stood at her holo-display drawing on a piece of paper on the countertop. She gazed at the now complete doodle with her head resting on a bent hand. It depicted two feminine figures looking at each other inside of a heart that encompassed the duo. They both had shoulder length hair; one darkly colored and the other a lighter shade. Kelly absentmindedly drew tiny hearts around the darker haired figure while sighing smoothly.

"Hey, Kelly," a voice spoke from behind the ginger. She jumped and turned around, her face a bright red. Shepard stood before her fully geared sans weapons. Kelly quickly turned back to her drawing and did her best to tuck it away under her terminal. "Watcha got there?" Shepard said tilting her head to look over Kelly's shoulder.

"N-nothing, it's nothing," she stuttered turning back around to face the ex-spectre. "I'm just, you know," she cleared her throat while pushing some hair out from in front of her face. "Finishing some work. Nothing important." She finished the sentence with a smile that she hoped would cover the blush. Shepard smirked back at her before letting the issue drop.

"I'm taking down some gang operations in the system so I need you to tell Garrus and Thane to meet me in the hangar."

"Right, of course, I'll do it right now," Kelly replied hurriedly, noticing that her cheeks were still hot. Shepard flashed another heart-melting smile and ran to the elevator. Kelly watched as she disappeared into the car. Something about that woman got to Kelly. She was mesmerizing…

"Oh, and one other thing!" Kelly looked back to see Cera holding open the elevator doors and leaning out slightly. "Make sure Jack doesn't do anything stupid like, y'know, hurt herself or something!" She yelled at Kelly.

"I'll keep tabs on her," Kelly assured her commander. Shepard smiled a final time and let the elevator close to take her into the recesses of the Normandy. Jack? Kelly supposed their relationship wasn't a secret but it had never really been stated, either. She could hardly be called surprised, though.

Suddenly remembering the job given to her, Kelly yelped and turned around to send quick messages to the local Turian and Drell that requested their immediate and prepared presences in the hangar. Almost as soon as the messages were sent, a request for a visual call appeared in the center of her screen from Dr. Chakwas. Correspondence between the two doctors was not uncommon as they often collaborated with each other and Mordin over the well-being of the ship's crew. However, it usually meant that she would be tasked with something. She tapped on the 'Accept' icon and pressed her right ear lobe where the activation software to her wireless transmitter rested. All Cerberus operatives were implanted with the devices along with omni-tools in their arms and translators in both ears. She wondered if Jack would ever be willing to undergo the surgery.

"Ms. Chambers, this is- oh, are you doing well? You look out of sorts." Kelly looked shocked but realized her face was still red. She closed her eyes and focused on the thought of her crew dead. A morbid concept, but it always neutralized her mood.

"Better?"

"Are you stressed? I have some treatments for-"

"No! I-I mean, no, that won't be necessary. Just a little tense. It's passed," Kelly assured Chakwas with her cheeky grin. Chakwas looked unconvinced but waved it away.

"Just let me know if you need anything for it." Kelly nodded and the doctor continued. "I'm sure you're aware of Jack's current state." Kelly nodded again her mind wondering what Chakwas could possibly need from the Yeoman. "She can't perform physical activities outside of the mundane which is why she did not leave with the commander. She is nearing the end of her recovery and, since you have been having problems getting her to speak with you like the others do, I thought that this would be a wonderful opportunity for you to both observe her health and possibly connect with her. She's been more social since her injury so I think you should be able to get her to talk. I could have done this myself but I thought you could use the help getting to her." Chakwas wasn't lying when she said Kelly needed to connect to Jack. As Yeoman, it was her job to observe the mental health and state of the crew which she did by speaking to each individual member one-on-one as friendly and as realistically as possible. No clipboard and only asking questions if they seemed important or she got close enough to them. She had no problem performing this duty with any crew member except for Jack who refused her audience every instance she asked. Kelly was elated to hear that she might finally get the chance to break the ice. Her face lit up and she grinned wildly.

"Thank you so much, Karin! This will help me so much! I'll make sure she heals properly, too, and let you know if there are any changes in her health." Chakwas nodded to her.

"Thank you and I am glad I could help." With a smile, her image fizzled from the screen leaving Kelly staring at her contacts list. An opportunity to reach Jack… Not something she had planned for today when she had been staring at her alarm from her bed hours prior, but she was duly excited for this.

Kelly shuffled items around in her workspace and synced her wireless receiver to her terminal to alert her if she received a message before shutting of the holo-display. She picked up a pen and notepad as she left for the elevator. Jack would likely shut down if Kelly approached with pen and paper but it hardly counted if she jotted some notes down after the session.

She hummed softly to herself watching the number on the elevator panel reduce by two digits. The doors eased open and she stepped into the vacant hallway. She peered into the hanger to see that the shuttle was absent as expected. Shepard certainly didn't waste any time getting on with her mission. Now, the Normandy would hang in orbit around some non-descript planet, her crew awaiting the inevitable and triumphant return of their fearless commander and her cohorts. It was always a spectacle to watch the battle-worn landing party step off the shuttle carrying the spoils of their exploits. Kelly suddenly felt hot as the image of Cera entered her mind.

Coughing to remove the unprofessional thoughts from her head, the very professional Yeoman professionally walked down to the under carriage of the engineering to perform her profession. Professionally. She tip-toed to the corner overlooking the reddened room hoping Jack wouldn't sense her approach.

"Quit screwin' around, carrot-top. I'm not in the fucking mood to be 'evaluated.'" _So much for that idea_. Kelly stepped out from her corner smiling clumsily. Jack sat in her cot, legs planted firmly on the floor and her arms resting nervously across her knees as her hands fought the air in her palms. Her tattoos were contorted in the dark lighting created by the rad lamps of the ship's underbelly and her shaven cranium seemed to gleam. She tapped her booted foot, crimson lips closed loosely, as she stared back at the Yeoman with her hazel eyes. She was beautiful.

Kelly always viewed Cera as the ultimate beauty but that didn't mean she couldn't see the beauty in everyone else. Within their merry crew, Joker had his kinship, Miranda had her perseverance, Jacob had his confidence, Samara had her duty, Zaeed had ambition, Tali had hope, Mordin bore logic, Kasumi made with frivolous kindness, Grunt had honor, and Garrus had justice. Each were gorgeous and infinitely loveable individuals in appearance and personality and Kelly respected and adored each. She had ample time to become familiar with all of them through their personal conversations but she'd never gotten that close to Jack. Her virtue seemed to be held within her rage but Kelly doubted that was all Jack carried. Something else burned under that map of tattoos and volatile personality and Kelly was determined to see what it was if it was the last thing she ever did.

"Spit it out an' go. I… ain't in the mood." There was no malice in her voice like there would have been mere weeks ago. Whatever Shepard had been doing seemed to be working. That simple fact dismayed Kelly somewhat. Shepard was doing the Yeoman's job better than the Yeoman. Well, if Cera could do it, then so could Kelly.

"I'm not going. Not for a while."

"Look, I get the whole 'girls club' thing, and that works with the girl scouts upstairs, but I'm only here for Ce- Shepard." Kelly could see the convict's cheeks flush as she spoke their commander's name.

"I'm just here to watch over you during the end of your recovery so there's nothing to worry about." Jack stared at her for a long second before looking back down.

"I don't need a babysitter; I need-" Jack stopped and leaned back against the bulkhead behind her. She knew how to keep secrets but it seemed that the strings holding them together were beginning to fray. Kelly needed to change her tactics.

"I'm not here to baby you, Jack; I'm here so you have someone," Kelly urged as she sat next to Jack. It was a gamble but she needed to play this more aggressively if she was going to get anywhere with the stubborn woman. Jack didn't protest to the statement or action. Instead, she just stared at the ceiling, her eyelids drifting slowly over her irises. Kelly's breath caught in her throat as she gazed at Jack's face held generously in the dim light. She only resumed breathing when she saw those endless eyes staring back at her. Fidgeting awkwardly, Kelly cast her sight to the floor and looked at the items adorning Jack's feet. How long had she worn those boots?

"Fine. Fucking stay. Just stop staring at me, geek." Kelly smiled. It was progress.

"If I can't stare, then may we at least talk?" Jack didn't respond immediately. Kelly assumed that the woman would have retaliated the instant the words left the Yeoman's mouth but was pleased when Jack hadn't outright denied her request.

"Tch, whatever," Jack mumbled less callously than she had likely intended as she shoved her arms behind her head.

"How are you feeling about the mission?" Kelly wasn't about to waste this opportunity by delving too deep too quickly so she asked the most basic question of all her analyses.

"When I said you could talk, I didn't think you'd start drillin' me." Even the simplest of queries was met with aggravation. Something to add to the file. Isn't psychology fun?

"I'm not trying to interrogate you. I just thought you'd rather talk about yourself than hear about me." It wasn't standard procedure for the expert to bring up personal information but this was a special case.

"Th-that's not- well-" Jack stopped herself again and shifted to stare at the ground. Her knee was almost touching Kelly's. _Stop it, Kelly! Don't think about that; it's unprofessional!_ Kelly chided herself. "I don't care." She was giving in.

"I think you do but you're just too proud to admit it, "Kelly stated matter-of-factly. Jack glared at her out of the corners of her eyes.

"Don't assume things you don't know anything about." Jack's voice was saturated with contempt but not for the girl sitting next to her. While the words were directed to Kelly, she could tell the tone came from something much deeper. For the sake of a possible friendship, she chose to avoid the topic for now.

"Um, then," Kelly muttered nervously as she moved some hair behind her ear. "What's your favorite color?" _Favorites? Really? Forced to change subjects and you ask for her _favorite color_? What is your-_

"What are you really after, Chambers? No one asks me about anything unless they want something. Everyone wants something."

"What about Shepard?" She regretted the words the instant they passed her lips.

"That's… different."

"Is it?" Jack had revealed a fissure in her wall and Kelly wasn't going to lose this shot. Jack turned to her quickly.

"Yeah, it is. You're just here to make sure I'm doing what Cerberus wants!"

"That's not true!"

"Isn't it? Fuck," Jack growled as she laid back again. "I'm not asking again; what the fuck do you want? An' no shitting around." Kelly didn't know what to say. But she had to say something soon or Jack would disregard anything she uttered. Thinking fast, Kelly opened her mouth.

"I want to get to know you, truly know you." Kelly wanted to say more but couldn't think of anything to make what she said any more credible. Jack was just going to have to believe her.

"Only one other person's told me that."

"And how did that turn out?" Kelly assumed who Jack was referring to so she didn't plan on probing that topic any further.

Jack hesitated again but, this time, for longer. Time seemed to slow. The only sounds Kelly could hear were the distant vibrations of the mass effect drive and Jack's concentrated breathing. Kelly studied Jack's detailed arm closest to her as the convict continued thinking. Her skin was covered from shoulder to wrist with exquisitely drawn faces of women nearly as beautiful as to one they were imprinted on. Some had short hair, long hair, spiked hair, scars, and other characteristics not unlike many attributes sported by Jack. For some reason, Kelly felt saddened looking at them.

"What do you want to get out of this?" Jack's quiet voice broke Kelly from her reverie making her turn away. Once again, she was at a loss for words. She had come down here to observe and evaluate the tattoo-ridden biotic but now she wasn't so sure that was all. Had she stepped down those stairs with something else in mind? Did she want to use Jack like so many others had?

"No!" Kelly blurted out startling Jack. "I- I mean, um…" Now she was on the spot without words. Again. "I don't know," she claimed shakily. It sounded true enough; true for the moment, anyway. "I don't know what I want from you. But, what I do know is that I don't plan on using you for anything. You are your own person and I won't inhibit that. Right now, I'm really just here to watch you." That didn't make her sound like a stalker. Feeling suddenly awkward, she shuffled her hands under her knees and dangled her feet an inch off the floor. She'd said all she could say. She only hoped it was enough.

More silence. Kelly was surprised such an impersonal woman was voluntarily, or possibly subconsciously, allowing such lapses in conversation with a person she didn't like. Or did she?

"I'm scared," Jack stated coldly as she pulled her knees into her chest burying her head in them to stare forward. _Scared? Of what?_ Kelly was asking herself too many questions that she hadn't discovered the answers for. She was going to answer this one. She relinquished a hand from beneath her leg and placed it over one of Jack's knees eliciting a glare from the woman.

"I'm," she cleared her throat then restarted. "I'm… here." She smiled cheekily. She'd intended for a much smaller grin but her anxiety made her overcompensate. Jack shuffled under her touch and Kelly removed the hand quickly not wanting to make the convict more uncomfortable than she already was.

"It's Shepard." Kelly thought she had heard to last of this but was more than eager to hear additional information. "Ever since… Jesus, I sound like a normal fucking person," Jack said with a mirthless laugh. Kelly caressed her back softly to which Jack merely glanced back at her the smirk vanishing from her gorgeous crimson lips. "Since that stupid mission on Illium, Cera's been-"

"Distant." Kelly surprised both of them as she finished the convict's statement. "I know; she hasn't really been talking to me, either. It's like she's there-"

"But not." Jack leaned into Kelly's hand as she completed the Yeoman's thought.

"So what do you suggest?"

"Figured you'd know."

"If I knew everything, I wouldn't- well, I'd still be down here, but it wouldn't be nearly as interesting." Jack gave Kelly a puzzled looked but otherwise didn't act on the remark. "I'll try talking to her, but she's yours. If anyone's going to get to her, it's you." Jack merely shrugged now staring at the floor intently. Kelly didn't remove her hand from her back.

"I'm so sick of this. Being paranoid, mean, a stupid little girl crying like a homesick child. I thought she'd end it but it's only gotten worse. I never should have let her in."

"You're wrong." Kelly said the words with such conviction that she couldn't believe she had said them so readily. She corrected her sentence before Jack had time to react negatively. "I- I mean it's not bad to let people in. Some will hurt you and, in your case, a lot will. But, clearly, some people learn and mean to treat you with kindness which you'd never receive if you just blocked everyone. You just need to have faith." Jack scoffed. "What?"

"Faith. I don't believe in anything, let alone people."

"You believe in Shepard well enough. Or is that different?" Jack didn't reply. Kelly smiled and pulled the woman close to her. _Being held by someone always makes _me_ feel better._

Almost immediately after Jack pressed against Kelly's body, tears began streaming down her face. She didn't make a sound and Kelly wasn't about to goad her by mentioning it.

"Shit," she choked out. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

"You don't seem to believe in a lot of things."

"Belief has only hurt me. Don't trust anyone."

"Do you trust _me_?" Kelly didn't know why she asked that but she had to know. It was so soon but she just had to know if Jack was starting to open up. She was obviously showing some reciprocation by what was happening but Kelly needed the words with it.

"Shut up and hold me." Kelly smiled and pressed her arms hard into the woman as she closed her eyes and sunk into the embrace. It was painful to see but at least she wasn't bottling it. Out of all that she had hoped to accomplish, this was above and beyond anything Kelly had imagined. _I guess I won't be writing on that notepad after all_.

Hours had passed and she couldn't get what had happened out of her mind. Kelly twirled a pen absent-mindedly in her fingers as she sat in her personal office. She had intended to fill out some reports that were to be sent to the Illusive Man, particularly on the situation with Jack, but she just couldn't bring herself to do anything and she'd rather die before she betrayed Jack's trust. Really? _Do I value our friendship that much? Friendship? I wonder if she thinks about me that way, too…_ The door to her office parting abruptly yanking her from her thoughts and she nearly jumped from her chair tossing her pen to the side. She turned around to see Shepard standing in the doorway.

"O- oh, hey, um, Cera." She swallowed. She'd told Jack that she wouldn't tell Shepard about the convict's doubts but her love for the commander made that increasingly difficult. "What, uh, can I do? For you, I mean." She coughed into her hand before smiling and standing up. Shepard eyed her quizzically.

"You weren't at your station so I thought something was up. I wasn't gone that long."

"I know. I just had some reports to do, nothing to worry about." Shepard glanced over her shoulder at the barren desk and closed monitor.

"Yeah, because you look _so_ busy. I can't imagine how proud your superiors must be of you." Kelly frowned.

"What's wrong?" Shepard looked at her apparently startled by the accusation that _she_ was now the topic of speculation.

"No- nothing. Just a long day, I suppose- hey, have you talked to Jack?"

"No! Or, uh, a little…" She didn't know why she was so stunned by the question. Of course Jack was on Shepard's mind. Why hadn't that occurred to her? Cera raised an eyebrow.

"Well? Is she alright?"

"I don't know; why don't you ask her?" _Oh god, that was _not_ supposed to come out that way._ Kelly closed her eyes wishing she'd just die right there.

"Ok, I see how it is. Fine, I will. Talk ta ya later, Kelly." The loud clang of boots was heard for a few seconds before the slam of a panel and the sliding of a mechanized door and Kelly was left in silence for what felt like the thousandth time that day. _I'm such a terrible psychiatrist_.

"Cera!" Jack shouted as she jumped up from her cot. Shepard didn't know her girlfriend had to capacity to be so… excited. She smiled.

"Hey," she said warmly as she wrapped her arms around the smaller woman. Shepard had changed back into her Cerberus fatigues and coddled Jack's head against her shoulder. "Not to sound overly sappy, but I missed you." She felt a fist slam against her arm. "Yeah, that was pretty corny."

"Enough to eat it."

"Don't tempt me." Fingers gripped her back tightly and she responded by pulling Jack back to her cot and sitting with her. Jack leaned against her not letting go. "Actions speak louder than words and your actions are _a lot_ sappier than anything a tree could say.

"Why does everyone talk all the time? I need this; be happy for that." Shepard grinned choosing to enjoy the company of her girlfriend before she ruined it with any more of her 'talk.' For at least a moment, all thoughts of any persuasive Asari or angry Yeoman evaporated from her mind. Anything she needed to tell Jack could wait a little longer. She just hoped she wouldn't have to tell her _too_ soon.

Jack stirred her drink idly as she sat at her table eyeing the guests as they each departed slowly. She'd been waiting for an hour and Cera still hadn't returned. Jack left the drink alone to smooth out her ivory dress and reposition the straps. Cera had insisted on the attire hours before and Jack had caved. A few kisses to the nape of her neck and Shepard could get anything she wanted out of the rubbery former-convict.

They were the hosts and were expected to be there for their guests yet, here Jack was, alone and without her lover. Again. There were expectations! Becoming unsettled in her mind, Jack stood and strode down to the end of the massive room littered with red-satin-laden tables and sparkling dinnerware. No one was left and thank God for that. Jack didn't know if she could handle talking to another one of them. They were such flatterers and she was in no mood to be coddled by anyone but her favorite redhead.

She shoved open the heavy metal door that revealed an endless, black hallway that went on forever. Jack was in no mood for any games tonight and traveled down the length in a jog with her dress hiked up her legs. She hated how limited the apparel was but she did like the way Cera looked at her. It made her feel appreciated.

At the end of the hall was a door, open slightly ajar, where light poked out in a swath that cut the black like a blade. Jack crept close and eased the barricade open to see her girlfriend sitting on a couch and-

"**No!**" Jack sat up heaving loudly as sweat dripped off her soaked brow. Her eyes were wide but she couldn't see a thing and had to take a second to register her surroundings. She was back in the Normandy, under engineering, next to the drive core, in her cot, safe, alone. Cold. Hot. Scared. Relieved. She didn't want to think about it. She didn't want to sleep, either. That was enough sleep for one day. She thought she'd hang herself if she dozed off again. But she needed something; _someone_.

She immediately ripped the thin sheet draped over her and tossed it aside before running as silently as she could up to the elevator. Most of the crew slept on the same hours but a few people had 'graveyard' shifts, or whatever they'd be called seeing as there was no night, so she did her best not to alert anyone to her presence. Without hesitation, she pressed a key on the panel and shut her eyes as the car rose. That dream… No, she wasn't going to think about it. That's why she was going here. To get her mind of it, off everything.

The doors peeled apart and she shot through them like a bullet before they had opened completely. She rapped her fingers on a metal door vigorously but not too hard so that only the person within could hear her. She waited. Patience wasn't her strong suit but, for this, she'd manage. Dream… _No! Shut the fuck up, brain!_ It always pissed her off that she couldn't control herself like she could others. It was infuriating, in fact.

She heard footsteps finally after what seemed an eternity and the door parted to show a very groggy Kelly Chambers. Her hair was askew and her eyes half open wearing nothing but a tank top and short shorts. Upon seeing her visitor, Kelly almost instantly woke up and rushed back into her room grabbing a robe to throw it over herself then returned to the tattooed woman. Jack smiled though it was too dark for Kelly to see it.

"Um, hey," Kelly said softly as she pushed some hair out of her face and tried to smooth the rest with one hand. "What's," she coughed then resumed. "What's going on?" There was nothing but warmth in her voice and that was exactly what Jack needed.

"Nothing, really, just… can I come in?" Even in the darkness, Jack could see Kelly's surprise on her features. Jack always fancied checking people out on occasion but Kelly was certainly above-average in the beauty department. Even covered in sleep, she was a rival to Jack's girlfriend. _My girlfriend… She won't care if I go to Kelly. Shepard isn't the only person in my life- she can't control me! I'm my own person!_ Kelly nodded and Jack walked in swiftly. Her bare feet hardly made a sound as she went to sit down in Kelly's chair at her desk.

She'd never seen the Yeoman's room but it was pretty large for a crew member who wasn't a part of Shepard's squad but she supposed that her role as ship shrink permitted her the use of a larger workspace for interviews or whatever she did. Jack wondered if Kelly treated everyone the same way she had treated the tattooed girl that day.

"Want me to get you something? I'm sure I have an energy drink around here somewhere." Jack grinned at the hospitality. Kelly turned on the light after the door was closed and shut her eyes with it as she waited to adjust to the sudden change. Jack had already grown used to the light.

"Yeah, alright. I'll go sit in your- shrink chair, is it?" Kelly laughed.

"It's just a chair," she replied jovially as she dug through a cabinet still clutching onto her robe with one hand. Jack stood and walked around the desk to sit on the larger, upright chair. She didn't feel like sitting in the longer chair where stupid people sat. Only idiots sought help for their own doubts. _Isn't that why _you're_ here, dipshit?_ Jack shook her head violently. "What's wrong?" Jack looked up abruptly to see Kelly handing her a small can and took it without question. Kelly sat on the longer chair but stayed vertical.

"Nothing." Jack cracked open the can with a hiss and began sipping at the cool drink. It crackled in her mouth and she relished the way it swept all the cotton balls out of her system. She handed it to Kelly who stared at it like it was infected. Jack laughed before explaining herself. "You just woke up. Take a swig to get to dust outta your throat." Kelly grinned then took the offering. "Anyway, um, sorry I woke you up. Yeah… I didn't know what else to do." Kelly swallowed and handed back the can. Jack took it but just put it down.

"I'm always here so there's no need apologize. You're acting really nice, though. Did something happen?" Nice?

"Fuck, uh, no?" That wasn't very convincing. Kelly giggled letting her robe drop slightly showing her collar bone.

"Ok, you don't have to talk about it. I'm just glad you decided to come to me for… whatever you need." She put her hand on Jack's knee and looked her in the eye. She hadn't realized just how good looking she was. It was kinda… gross. Cerberus, shrink, and not her girlfriend? No, she just came here for a talk. Nothing more. Now.

"I'm just gonna jump into it: I can't sleep. I haven't been able to…"

"That's not good, especially in your state."

"State?"

"Well, I guess you've almost recovered, but you might have recovered much sooner if you hadn't had troubles sleeping for so long. What's the issue? RLS? A fever?" Certainly felt like a fever.

"No. Dreams. Nightmares, I guess." Kelly's face sunk.

"Oh. I'm afraid I can't prescribe anything for that." Jack stared at her for a second before laughing.

"Chambers, if I wanted a doctor, I would have woken up the old woman." Kelly giggled again. She was really cute when she did that.

"I guess you want to talk about it, then. Rationalizing a dream might help you overcome it."

"Yeah, something like that."

"Why didn't you go to Shepard?"

"She's in it." Kelly's eyes widened.

"_Oh_. I can see why that would be… conflicting. Well, don't worry, I'm here. And I won't tell her you came if you don't want me to."

"Thank you." Kelly smiled before pulling her robe back up over her shoulders.

"So, what's it about?" And, as easy as that, Jack described the dream and all its varied occurrences. Each dream was different but they all ended the same, horrible way. She couldn't shake the feeling that they were more than dreams.

"That's an interesting world you've developed in your head."

"I didn't do it on purpose," Jack stated more harshly than she'd meant to.

"Oh, no! I didn't mean to suggest that! It's just vivid and consistent. That is a little troubling, though. Particularly the, uh-"

"End." Kelly looked down. Jack couldn't believe she'd actually told Kelly, _Kelly_, before anyone else if anyone at all. "I- I'm done talking about this. I think I'm gonna go."

"No, wait." She was definitely saying no a lot of things. She had quite a bit of doubt for a psych. "You're still having trouble sleeping so why not, I don't know, stay here? Maybe it'll help?" Jack hadn't thought about that. She was immensely tired and open to suggestions.

"If you think it will." She didn't want to betray her girlfriend but this wasn't cheating. She was just getting help from a new friend; one who actually _could_ help. It was scary but comforting at the same time.

"Alright," she said sounding surprised. "Um, get ready and I'll, uh, meet you in bed. God, that sounds really awkward; we're not sleeping together!" Kelly nearly shouted. "I'm just… helping you."

"I know. Trust me; I'm not looking at this the wrong way. See ya under the sheets."

"Now you're doing it on purpose." Jack grinned deviously. This interaction felt familiar. She quickly shrugged the feeling.

In a matter of minutes, both women were left wearing shorts and small shirts lying beside each other on a twin bed. Jack had crammed next to many people before to sleep but this was… well, different. She had her back to Kelly and the Yeoman was holding her loosely. Jack felt safe and warm. No cold or fear this time, either. Just… security.

Kelly's arms were as warm as her words and her small bed only made them that much easier to enjoy. They weren't doing anything awkward but, for once in a long while, Jack finally felt comfortable sleeping. That night, in the Kelly's arms, she wasn't plagued by any images of a promiscuous girlfriend and her other woman.


	13. Interlude IX

Interlude IX

I'm so tired. Seriously. I haven't slept in... you get the idea. I'm happy to announce a new, full-length chapter so I HOPE YOU'RE ALL HAPPY. Like me. I'm really falling in love with this story if I hadn't already. Anyway, I had a lot of problems with this chapter in terms of vocabulary so, if you see anything that bothers you, please _please_ tell me.

If you hadn't noticed from the chapter, I've taken in some feedback and acted on it. I'd already planned on including Kelly into the mix a long time ago but I only decided to keep that plan when multiple people suggested it. nothing major going on now but I'm sure your all see where it's going. As one of my readers have said, it's like watching mentos and diet pop in slow motion. _It totally is_. I hope you're all enjoying it.

In other news, I'm in college and am seriously sucking at it. Belated updates will be expected but I'm sure that's expected by default with me anyway. I'm currently working on revising and fixing all previous chapters so I'll let you all know when that's done.

I'm getting my head shaved today in honor of jack once again so that's exciting. I'm thinking of getting a dress, too. Thoughts? I wanna look pretty. Maybe Jack's white dress. I never figured her to wear one but, when I imagined it, I couldn't get the image out of my head. Jack in white dresses forever!

Please review, love me, hate me, seriously need your thoughts on this chapter, and please check out my Christmas special if you haven't.

This has been a public service announcement.


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